When In Rome
by LucindaRemyMalfoy
Summary: After a bad breakup with Ron, Hermione decides to go visit her cousin in Rome for a change of scenery and a new start, and maybe, just maybe, the Italian she met at the Leakey Cauldron was right, and wishes really did come true...just not in the way she expected. M for later chapters.
1. Hermione

**I know I should be writing on A Moment in Time, but this idea would NOT leave my head...so here's something else i'm turning into a chapter story, but I won't neglect my other story, promise (:**

* * *

"You cheated on me again you ungrateful bastard!"

"Hermione, please, I'm sorry! She didn't mean anything to me I swear." pleaded Ron, following a furious Hermione around their apartment while she threw her things into suitcases and trunks.

"If she didn't mean anything to you, you wouldn't have shagged her at all, let alone _again!"_

"Hermione, I love you. You know that!"

"You don't love me! You wouldn't have cheated on me with that slag Lavender Brown if you did." she said, throwing the last of her things into her trunk and shrinking everything down before putting them in her pocket.

"It was an accident I didn't-"

"No," she snapped, cutting him off, "An accident is falling off a bike, an _accident_ is bumping into someone, but having sex-_cheating-_is not an accident! You don't just trip and fall into a vagina you idiot!"

He tried to grab her hand, but she shoved him away, "Do not put your bloody hands on me. You have _no _right."

"I know that you're mad-"

"I'm not mad, Ron, I'm furious. We've been together for _two years_ and you just throw it away for some whore." she said, walking towards the door.

"Hermione please don't do this. I can change." he pleaded desperately.

At that she laughed, "Right, like I haven't heard that one before. I am twenty two years old Ron. I deserve better than this."

Without looking back she left the flat for the last time, to start a life without Ronald Weasely and their toxic relationship.

* * *

"Hermione, come on. You know how Ron is. He loves you. Don't you think you should give him a second chance?"

"I already gave him a second, third, and _fourth_ chance Ginny. I'm done." said Hermione.

Hermione was currently on the phone with her best friend, and she couldn't help but be a bit irritated at the fact that she was taking Ron's side. Regardless of whether he was her brother or not, that didn't make cheating okay.

"I know...but Mione, you guys were good together. You were good for him." she said, trying to reason with Hermione.

"But he wasn't good for me Ginny." she said quietly.

Ginny sighed, but accepted her decision, "So what are you going to do now? Where are you even at right now?"

"I'm at the Three Broomsticks, but I'm only going to be here for a few days while I get a few things worked out with my cousin Calista in Rome."

"Rome?!"

"Yeah...I thought that it might be a good idea to start over, take a break from everything. Besides that I haven't seen Calista since I visited her and her family when I was like ten. I've missed her." she explained.

"How long are you going to be gone?" asked Ginny, tears coming to her eyes. She could kill Ron for causing her best friends sudden need to leave London.

"I'm not sure. I don't really have a set date. I just want to see how things go."

"You better call, and write, and-"

"Ginny, it'll be alright. I'll be back before you know it." she said, trying to console her friend.

"Yeah...do you want me to kick Ron's ass for you? Or Lavender for that matter?"

At that both girls laughed, "No, they definitely deserve each other."

"I'm going to miss you." said Ginny after a short pause.

"I'll miss you too."

"Well you better go and meet as many sexy Italian boys as you can."

Hermione laughed and said, "Of course!"

"Let me know when you get there."

"I will."

With that Hermione hung up and dialed Calista's number.

"Hey! When are you going to get your ass down here?"

Hermione laughed, "That's why I was calling you actually. I wanted to know when you'd be ready for me to pop over there."

Calista was a wizard as well, and had a floo in her apartment that Hermione would use to get there.

"You can come as early as tomorrow. Only thing I have to do is get the floo working with yours."

Calista was so excited that Hermione was coming to visit her. They'd been talking about it for years, but it never seemed like the right time for either of them. Now, with Hermione's breakup, Calista had offered Hermione a room and some time to live it up in Rome so they could finally fulfill the promises they'd made each other about meeting up again one day.

"Perfect, so I'll see you sometime tomorrow then."

They agreed and Hermione hung up.

She had a bit of time to kill, so she decided she'd go down to the Leakey Cauldron for a drink. Merlin knew she needed it.

She walked down Diagon Alley, taking in the familiar sights and familiar places, not knowing when she'd be back again. She really didn't have a plan, but she always had one, so she thought that just this once she should just go with it.

She hadn't cried when she'd found out about Ron's latest affair with Lavender, she'd suspected it anyway. And honestly it was probably her fault for taking him back all those times and believing that he really would change for her.

It was obvious to everyone that Ron loved her, but that wasn't enough. It wasn't enough to stop him from cheating with that slag.

She shook her head to stop that particular train of thought. The entire point of her going away to Rome was so that she could forget all about her bastard of an ex boyfriend, and focus on herself.

She walked into the Leakey Cauldron and took a seat at the bar.

"Fire Whiskey, please." she said to the new bartender.

He nodded with a smile and poured her a glass, sliding it down the bar to her and turning to a couple who'd just walked in.

She sipped on her drink, enjoying the slow burn as it went down her throat, and the warm feeling that settled in her stomach. She usually didn't drink something as strong as Fire Whiskey, but she didn't know if they had it in Rome, and she knew she deserved a drink after the week she'd had.

A few minutes later she asked for a refill and turned to let her eyes wander around the rest of the place. There were couples everywhere, friends from Hogwarts, and a few people she didn't recognize, but she stayed at the bar. She didn't really want to be with anybody right now.

When she was done with her second glass, someone she didn't recognize slid onto the bar stool next to hers. She didn't pay him much mind, and was getting her wallet out to pay the bartender before she left, but his voice stopped her.

"Can I buy you another drink?"

She looked over at him, and he was pretty handsome. He had black hair that hung in his eyes, he was fairly tan, blue eyes, and from what she could tell he was muscular.

"Um..."

"Oh come on, just one drink." he said, flashing her a killer smile.

"Sure, why not." she reluctantly agreed. There was something about him that unnerved her, but she ignored it. She probably wasn't used to having to talk to other men, considering she'd spent the last two years with that-

"So do you come here often?" he asked as he watched her take a sip of her drink.

"Yeah, I've basically grown up around here. You?"

"No, I just moved in with a friend a few weeks ago." he explained.

She noticed he didn't have a British accent, "Where'd you move from?"

"Italy." he said, flashing her another one of his smiles.

Her eyes widened at the news and she couldn't help but smile. "That's funny, I'm actually going to Rome tomorrow to visit my cousin."

"Oh really? Have you been before?"

She nodded, "Yeah, but I was young, so I don't remember much."

"I'm sure you'll love it. You have to go to the Fontana di Trevi and make a wish." he said, his eyes sparkling.

"Why?" she asked, slightly confused. She didn't really believe in wishes.

"Because it's the most popular fountain in Italy, and they say that if you take a coin and toss it into the fountain, your wish will come true."

She chuckled and said, "Alright, I'll do that."

What could it hurt right?

After a few minutes of silence she asked, "So who are you staying with anyway?"

"Draco Malfoy. Have you-"

She had just taken a sip of her drink and almost choked with the shock. Go figure the sexy Italian guy was friends with the biggest arsehole around.

"Whoa, you okay?"

She cleared her throat, "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. I should get going though. It's getting late."

She stood up and threw some money down onto the bar, not bothering to check the bills, before heading to the door.

"Hey, you never told me your name!"

She turned around, and couldn't help the smirk that crossed her face. If Draco knew his buddy here had been hanging out with her, she knew he'd have a fit.

She was giddy with the thought.

"Hermione. Hermione Granger."

He chuckled, "Well it was nice to meet you Hermione, hopefully I'll see you again."

"Well if you're ever in Rome..." she said with a smile, before heading outside.

She had walked a bit down the street before she heard her name and turned around.

"I'm Cato Argus!"

She smiled and yelled back, "It was nice to meet you Cato!"

With that she disappeared around the corner with a smile on her face, leaving behind a very intrigued Cato.

He couldn't wait to ask Draco if he knew the beautiful woman who had instantly captured his attention.


	2. Draco and Cato

"What the bloody hell are you rambling on about?"

Draco was extremely hung over, had just had to shoo some slag out of his bed that he didn't even remember shagging, and was now listening-or trying _not_ to listen to Cato ramble on about...what the hell was he rambling on about.

"Were you not listening to me?" asked Cato, slightly annoyed. It wasn't his fault that Draco always drank too damn much.

It hadn't taken him long to find that out, and the random girls that would leave the flat early in the morning was also something he'd grown accustom to.

"No, I was too busy listening to the _pounding_ in my head." he snapped, rubbing his temples.

"Why don't you just drink one of the potions-"

"Because I don't have any more of the bloody potions and I'm not really in the mood to try and make one."

Cato rolled his eyes and tried again, "Do you want to hear about the girl I met at the Leakey Cauldron or not?"

Draco sighed, of course he did, he always listened when Cato met girls. "Alright, what happened?"

He told him the story, and Draco nodded appreciatively, especially liking the description he gave of the girl.

"So did you get her name?"

"Yeah," he said, a smug smile on his face.

Draco scowled at him, "Are you going to tell me or not?"

"I'm not sure,"

Cato wasn't stupid. He'd heard Draco complain about Hermione countless times, and he knew the Muggle-born witch made his blood boil, but he also knew that that was all because of sexual frustration, or so he liked to think.

And ever since Cato met Hermione, he knew why. She was absolutely gorgeous. What he didn't understand is what irritated Draco so much about her. She seemed pretty carefree to him.

"For the love of Salazar, just bloody tell me or I will-"

"Hermione Granger." he said, a smug smirk on his face.

Draco's mouth fell open and he couldn't think of anything to say. Hermione Granger had irked him during their days at Hogwarts, and he hadn't really seen much of her aside from what he read in the paper. Most of what he read was about her and the Weasel, so it just annoyed him, because he knew even Granger could do better than stupid Weaselbee. He couldn't deny that she had turned out quite beautiful, at least from what he'd seen in articles. And he wouldn't ever admit to it, but she had been the star of quite a few, shall we say, 'wet dreams' of his.

"What the hell were you doing buying Granger a drink? At a bar?" Draco's voice came across harsher than he had wanted, and it didn't go unnoticed by Cato.

"Touchy, touchy. I know she's your girl so if-"

"She is most definitely not my girl."

"Well maybe if you got your head out of your ass for two seconds she would be." he held up a hand to stop him from saying anything and continued. "If it makes you feel better, I didn't know it was her. She didn't tell me her name until she was walking out the door."

Not that he would admit it, but it did make him feel better. For some reason he didn't like the thought of anyone being with Granger. He wanted to strangle Weaselbee for being with her. Just then something Cato said occurred to him.

"Did you say she was going to Rome?"

Cato nodded, "She said it was because she wanted to visit her cousin."

"She's probably going with that idiotic red-headed boyfriend of hers." he said, scowling.

Cato squinted, "She didn't seem like she had a boyfriend to me."

Draco sighed, abandoning the thought of Granger until he looked at the front page of The Daily Prophet.

**_WIZARDING WORLD'S GOLDEN COUPLE CALLS IT QUITS?_**

**_Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasely have allegedly broken up after two years of being the most talked about couple in the Wizarding World! An anonymous source tells us that he saw Miss Granger leaving her shared flat after a particularly loud argument. Ginny Weasely, Hermione Granger's best friend, and Ronald Weasely's little sister only had this to say, "What goes on in their relationship is their business, but Hermione had good reasons to leave. I love my brother, but he can be a royal idiot sometimes." Harry Potter was not available for questioning, but if he does have anything to say, you'll see it here. _**

Draco couldn't believe what he was reading. Granger had left the Weasel, no doubt because he'd been cheating with Lavender or whatever the hell the bint's name was.

He couldn't help but be proud of her. Granger deserved better than that, and it was about time she realized it.

Draco tossed the newspaper at Cato and said, "I assume this is the reason Granger decided to ditch London. She was trying to get away from this idiot."

Cato couldn't help but smirk, "Well if any place would be a good place, Rome would definitely be it. Especially if she's trying to get over him with someone new."

"Must we talk about this?" he snapped.

Cato knew why Draco was annoyed, but he decided to push just a little bit further.

"You know we could go to Rome and you could find her."

Draco snorted, "And say what exactly?"

"Well you'd better figure it out, because if you don't say something, then I will."

Cato did actually like Hermione. She was beautiful, intelligent, easy to be around, everything he could really ask for in a girl. But he wouldn't take her from Draco if he just admitted that he wanted her.

"What do you mean, you will?"

"She's a great girl Draco, and if you don't want to acknowledge that, I will."

Draco was livid, but schooled his features quickly, "Do whatever the bloody hell you want."

* * *

Draco was in a foul mood the entire day, and was eternally grateful that it was a Saturday and he didn't have to go in to work. The last thing he needed was a bunch of old racist business men breathing down his neck all day.

"So why exactly aren't we going to Rome?"

"Because then there's a chance we'll run into Granger."

"You say that like it's a bad thing. I'd love to run into her. She's really great." Cato said, a wistful smile on his face.

"Yeah, I'm sure you wouldn't mind." said Draco, annoyed that Cato was _still_ talking about it. I mean they were eating _dinner _for Merlin's sake.

"Just come with me. I mean what's the worst that could happen? You hook up with some Italian girl?" countered Cato, not letting him off the hook so easily.

"No, the worst that could happen would be hooking up with Granger."

"I think you're lying." he said with a smirk.

"I think I don't give a damn." he replied back with a fake smile.

"I think you do. I think you're worried that Hermione's the only girl who _won't _fall for your bullshit." said Cato with a smirk.

Draco scowled and said, "I can get any girl I bloody well please, you and I both know that."

"Then it looks like we're going to Rome."

Cato, decided to leave before Draco had a chance to say no, and apparated to Diagon Alley. He knew that Draco would go, if only to prove that he was right. He would be furious, but he would go.

At least that's what Cato was hoping. He wanted to see his friend settle down and stop shagging all those dumb slags. He could see that Hermione would be good for _him-great_ for him even.

Now the only trouble was going to be getting _him_ to see that.

So basically...he had a lot of work to do.

Draco was stubborn and arrogant, but he _had_ changed since the war, for the better. He knew it would be difficult to get him to get past his ego and admit that he fancied Hermione, but damn it all if he wasn't going to get him to do it.

Come hell or high water, Draco Malfoy was going to realize he had always had a thing for Hermione Granger.


	3. Let's Dance

"Have you ever considered that Ron might be a complete and utter ass who isn't worth your time?"

"It's crossed my mind a time or two." Hermione admitted.

Two weeks after Hermione had arrived in Rome, she and Calista were walking the streets of Rome, Hermione enjoying all the sights and new surroundings, while they discussed her relationship with Ron.

"How you managed to put up with him for as long as you did is completely beyond me." said Calista, tugging her into a small cafe.

"I mean it wasn't all bad. He's been my best friend for over eight years now."

Hermione felt like she had to defend Ron, because she had loved him, _still_ loved him, but never in the way she should have. Never in the way he said he loved her.

"Well he sounds like a shit best friend if he cheated on you."

Hermione sighed, "You're right."

It was always easier to just agree with Calista than to argue, because she wouldn't budge on a topic that she felt she was right about.

"Of course I'm right. When am I not?"

Hermione snorted, "Merlin, you sound just like Malfoy."

"Malfoy?"

"You remember, the blonde headed ferret?"

At that Calista's eyes lit up and she nodded, "He was quite handsome though, you must admit."

Hermione didn't dignify that with a response, instead ordering herself a cappuccino and ignoring Calista's smirk.

"You know there could be-"

"If you say anything about sexual frustration again I swear I will shove you into a canal, Calista." snapped Hermione, her tone dead serious.

All Calista seemed to want to talk about was the 'burning sexual desires' that we both apparently harbored for each other.

Hermione thought it was complete bullocks. Sure, she realized that he was handsome, and smart, and quick on his feet, and aside from that his body was always in shape from Quidditch, but that didn't cancel out the fact that he was an arrogant, cold, bastard who only did what made him happy without regard for anyone else.

She thought back to the first few times she'd read _The Daily Prophet_ and seen articles on the many one night stands that left his home at strange hours of the night, and sometimes even the morning.

After a while though, she became accustom to it, and didn't pay it any attention.

"Look, all I'm saying-"

"Better not have anything to do with Malfoy."

"It doesn't," she said, rolling her eyes at her cousin, "All I'm saying is that maybe it'd be a good idea to let loose here. Find some sexy Italian and see where it goes."

Hermione sighed, "I know that I should, I mean that's the entire reason I came here was to let go."

Calista smiled, "Perfect, because that means you won't object to going to a club tonight."

Hermione's eyes almost popped out of her head. "What? Are you insane? I don't even have anything to wear Calista!"

Calista just rolled her eyes, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder, before replying. "That is easily solved by a quick trip to the store."

"No shopping trip is quick with you." groaned Hermione, not looking forward to this day at all.

"Oh come on. You'll thank me when you end up leaving with an incredibly sexy Italian guy who wants to treat you to a night of passion and lust and-"

"Okay!" shouted Hermione, throwing her hands up in defeat, "I'll go, as long as you stop talking about this."

"Deal."

* * *

"You have two seconds to get your British ass out here before I drag you out myself." threatened Calista from outside the dressing room.

Hermione wanted nothing more than to shrink back into the wall. The dress, or if that's what you wanted to call it, was entirely too short, too revealing, and too tight for her liking.

It was a short red dress, with a few sequins across the neckline...the very, very, _very_ low cut neckline. So low cut in fact, that she would need to buy a bra with a clear band in the front. It came to about mid-thigh, and Calista had given her a pair of black pumps that she was almost certain she was going to die in.

She took a deep breath, because she knew that her crazy cousin would live up to her word of dragging her out, and pushed open the door.

Calista's eyes instantly lit up and she broke out into a wide grin, "Oh damn! Look at you!"

Hermione rolled her eyes and tried to concentrate on anything that wasn't her half nakedness.

"You are most definitely getting that, and you are most definitely wearing it to the club tonight. There is no way that _any_ man will be able to resist you." she said confidently.

Hermione just shrugged, not wanting to argue with her. If it got her off her back, at least for the night, Hermione would traipse around in the ridiculous little dress for a few hours. And the possibility of her meeting someone was incredibly inviting. Truth be told, she needed a quick fling, a 'summer romance' of sorts. Nothing serious.

"Well, let's get home so you can doll me up." she said, forcing a smile onto her face.

Calista squealed in excitement and they quickly left, heading back to her apartment, no doubt for more outfit related torture.

* * *

At ten that night, Calista and Hermione were dressed to kill and ready to dance. Hermione would never admit it, but she really was excited to go to a club in Rome, mostly because she couldn't wait to get lost in the music. Ron had never wanted to go to clubs with her, so she just hadn't gone, opting to stay with him instead.

"You look amazing." said Hermione, taking in Calista's outfit.

She had on a dark blue skin tight dress that went to about mid thigh and had almost no back to it. Her hair was swept on top of her head in a messy bun, and her heels were higher than Hermione's.

"You don't look to bad yourself, Hun." she said with a wink.

Hermione ran a hand through her curly mane of hair and turned to her cousin, "Alright, let the night begin."

They walked the short distance to the club, and Hermione was surprised when she followed Calista past all the people waiting outside in line.

Calista flashed a smile to the bouncer and he high fived her, "Haven't seen you here in a while Cal."

"Well to make it up to you, I brought a friend."

Hermione smiled as the cute bouncer eyed her appreciatively before saying, "All is forgiven."

He stepped aside to let them pass and Hermione was instantly in love with the feeling inside. It was all loud, bumping bass, flashing lights, and utter chaos.

"I'm going to get a drink!" yelled Calista over the pounding music. Hermione simply nodded, she wanted nothing more than to hit the dance floor.

She twisted her way through the crowd until she was in the middle of it all, completely lost in the music and moving with everyone else around her. Everyone's faces were distorted by the strobe lights, so when she felt two strong arms slide around her waist and a firm, muscular body press up against her, she didn't bother turning around to see who it was.

But, whoever it was, was definitely good at dancing. He matched her move for move as his hands sensually slid over her hips and stomach, trying to feel as much of her as possible.

She could tell that he was a good bit taller than her, and so she let her mind wander to who it could be that was dancing behind her. At first it was images of tall, tanned, dark haired Italians, but quickly turned into tantalizing images of platinum blonde hair, piercing gray eyes-

She momentarily lost her rhythm, but the man behind her steadied her, making sure she wouldn't fall. She felt his lips by her ear, and then his sultry voice was all she could focus on.

"Distracted?"

Part of her wanted to turn her face to look at him, but the other part of her didn't want to destroy the mystery behind it.

So she simply shook her head, no doubt smacking his face with her curls, but he just laughed and said, "I think you're lying, not that I blame you."

All of a sudden things started clicking. The voice, the snarky comment...

_Oh Merlin, please no. Anyone but him._ she thought, willing it _not_ to be the blonde haired gray eyed bastard when she turned around.

No such luck. Her eyes widened in shock, as did Draco's, but for totally separate reasons.

Hermione couldn't believe that she'd just been dancing on Malfoy. He would surely never let her live that down. Part of her managed to wonder what the hell he was doing in Rome anyway. Didn't he have anything better to do? Like work related? He was running his family's business after all.

Draco couldn't believe that Granger looked as good as she did in that little red dress. She felt so soft and warm and inviting under his hands, which he realized were still on her hips. Not that he cared to move them. She was the reason he was in Rome anyway right? To prove to Cato that he could get any witch to fall for him.

"Looking good Granger," he said by her ear, smirking when he saw color tinge her cheeks.

She tried to lean back, but his hands just held her hips tighter. She glared at him and leaned forward, her chest against his, and said, "Don't you think you should let me go? I'd hate for you to get my Mudbl-"

He pulled back and pressed a hand over her mouth, silencing what she was about to say. He didn't even say it anymore, and the word was entirely too harsh to be coming out of her beautiful mouth. That thought drew his attention to her sinfully sweet lips, but before he could do anything she was speaking again.

"Since when do you care what comes out of my mouth Malfoy?"

He rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, tired of having to yell over the music. To his, and her surprise, she followed him without protest. He led her up a set of stairs to a private spot that over looked the entire club. From up here she could still here the music, but it was much quieter.

She was thankful for the crisp air that flowed in from the open window, but that didn't make being alone with Draco Malfoy any less nerve racking.

_Why did he bring me here? _she thought, watching him as he took a seat on the black leather couch, his eyes on the glass wall where you could see the rest of the club.

"Are you just gonna stand there and stare Granger?" he asked, his gaze suddenly on her.

He rather liked the steady blush that was creeping onto her cheeks, it gave him a feeling of accomplishment. "Well?"

She let out a sigh and sat down on the couch, against her better judgement. She noticed that he was staring at her with a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen before, and it was making her feel self conscious.

"Why are you staring at me like that? Why the hell did you even bring me up here?"

"Why'd you let me?" he challenged, that ever present smirk on his face.

She ran a hand through her hair and sighed, "What are you getting at Malfoy?"

He slid closer to her on the couch and Hermione eyed him carefully, but didn't say anything. Merlin, had he always been this handsome?

"Nothing, Granger. At least nothing you wouldn't like." he said, his voice close to her ear.

For a moment she was completely caught up in the way he smelled, the way his voice flowed like honey, and how his breath fanned across her neck in a way that could only be described as erotic.

But as soon as he brushed his lips across her jaw line she snapped out of her trance like state and jumped up.

"What-what are you doing?" she stammered, much to Draco's amusement.

He stood as well and slowly walked over to her. He very much reminded her of a predator, stalking his prey before he pounced.

"What did it look like I was doing Granger?" he asked, his eyes roaming over her figure appreciatively, causing yet another blush to blossom, but this time it went all the way to the tops of her breasts.

He stepped forward again and said, "I wasn't lying when I said you looked good."

He heard her breath hitch. She was trying to look anywhere but at him. Why wasn't she moving? She should definitely be moving.

She was shocked out of her mental babble when she felt a cool touch on the side of her neck. "What are you doing?" she asked again.

"Enjoying the view."

She chanced a look up at him, and again his eyes held something unreadable in them. Something she'd never seen directed at her.

"But _why_?" The entire situation was so surreal, she couldn't believe she was really standing there speaking to Malfoy who seemed to be..._flirting_ with her.

"You ask too many questions." he said, his lips by her ear again.

If she turned her head just a fraction, their lips would be touching. She should want to move away from him, right? Of course she should. She was Hermione Granger for Merlin's sake.

Yet she wasn't moving. She wasn't really doing anything but standing there in complete shock.

Draco smirked and trailed his fingers up her neck, enjoying her sharp intake of breath, before moving them to her chin and turning her face to his.

Her eyes were wide, and their lips were inches apart.

Suddenly it seemed that at least Hermione's mouth had begun to work again and she said, "Well I wouldn't ask so many questions if you simply answered a few."

He smirked, secretly enjoying the feel of her cool breath brush against his lips, and said, "Well then, ask me a question Granger."

"Why are we here?"

He smirked again, "Well that's easy. I wanted to do this."

With that he leaned forward and closed the remaining space between their lips.

He was caught off guard by how soft her lips were, and by how much she smelled and tasted like vanilla and strawberries. She was intoxicating.

And she was kissing him back, albeit tentatively, but she was kissing him back no less.

Although she had absolutely no idea why. But she wasn't complaining, not really anyway. This was the exact thing she had been coming here to do...not with Malfoy, but she didn't really care about that at the moment.

He slid one hand up into her hair, pulling her closer, and moved his other hand to her waist. She slowly moved one hand up his chest and around his shoulder, to gently pull on the hair at the nape of his neck.

He groaned into her mouth and pulled her closer. He could already feel himself getting hard for the beautiful witch in his arms, and wasn't as put off by the idea as he would have been a few years ago.

Hermione ran her hand over the taut muscles of his chest, enjoying how they coiled and moved underneath her fingers, but as soon as Draco moved a hand to her chest she pulled away, both of them gasping for breath.

"Oh Merlin. No, no, no, no, no that did not just happen." she said, attempting to fix her hair so that it _didn't_ look like someone had been running a hand through it.

"You can say what you want Granger," said a very, _very_ smug looking Draco, "But we both know that you enjoyed it."

"Merlin, this is just some silly game to you isn't it?" she asked, already feeling her anger bubbling.

He smirked and shook his head, "No, I quite enjoyed myself actually."

She stuttered, attempting to come up with a response.

Draco chuckled at her shocked face and shrugged, "You're a good looking woman Granger, and we're both adults. It's only natural."

She shook her head, glaring at him again, "This was most certainly not natural!"

"Why not? You're attracted to me and I'm attracted to you. What's the problem?"

She regarded him cooly, understanding that she was no more than another conquest for him. "I'm not one of your Slytherin bed mates, or the whores that occupy your bed so often back home in London. So how about we continue to ignore each other like we have been since we graduated?"

Without waiting for a reply she stormed back downstairs, leaving an aggravated Draco behind.

"Bloody stupid bint." he muttered, making his way back over to Cato, who stood at the bar with a tall blonde. She was pretty, but he had talked to her earlier before he'd found Granger, and she wasn't his type.

She looked upset though, waving her hands around as Cato listened patiently.

When he was close enough he finally heard what she was saying.

"And then she had the nerve to go up there and shag him when she always said-you!" All of a sudden her gaze met Draco's and she was yelling, most of which he couldn't understand.

The jist of it was that he was a slimy git for talking to her earlier and then running off with her cousin, obviously Hermione, and 'shagging' her. He wanted to tell her that even though that's what he wished happened, it didn't actually, but the look on her face stopped him. He watched her storm off to Merlin knows where and he was left with Cato.

He leaned over to his friend and said, "I'm going to get out of here. I'll see you back at your house."

Cato nodded, not at all fazed by Calista's outburst. He could tell by the look on Draco's face that he hadn't gotten laid.

Hermione really was going to be Draco's first challenge. Cato just hoped he didn't back down from it.


	4. We Have A Date

"Hermione, wait up!"

Hermione had left the club, irritated with Calista, pissed off at Draco, and just ready to go home. But she didn't want to go home. She didn't want to have to listen to Calista bitch about how she 'shagged' Malfoy.

Yeah right.

She turned around and saw Cato jogging up to her. "Hey, you're actually here!"

She gave him a hug and then he fell into step next to her. "Headed home?"

She let out a long sigh and said, "No. My completely _wasted _cousin is throwing a fit, so I figure I'll just stay at a hotel or something until she sobers up enough to realize she was being stupid."

Calista was most definitely a dramatic drunk.

"No way are you staying in a hotel. Come stay with me." he said with a smile.

"Hey I'm not-"

He cut her off quickly, "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that you could stay in my house instead of having to pay the ridiculous amount of money for a hotel in the city."

At that she smiled but shook her head, "I would rather not be in such close proximity to Malfoy."

"Sure didn't seem like you minded a few minutes ago." he said with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes and punched his arm playfully. "Shut up."

They walked in silence for a few moments, Hermione not really paying attention to where she was going, until Cato spoke again.

"Please stay tonight. I promise Draco won't bother you. Besides, I could never forgive myself if I let you stay in a hotel." he said, flashing her a smile.

She sighed, thinking it over. She didn't know if she even had enough money for a hotel in the first place, and she wasn't that keen on staying by herself in a city she didn't know. Besides she didn't have her wand, she'd left it at Calista's apartment.

_To hell with it all_, she thought. "Alright, I'll stay to soothe your conscience."

He smirked and took her hand, pulling out his wand, and apparated to his home.

* * *

An hour had passed and Hermione was fairly sure that if she continued playing this stupid drinking game with Cato, she would be completely hammered.

The point of the game was to ask a question and if the other person lied about the answer they took a shot of Fire Whiskey, instead of having to admit it out loud, automatically letting the other person know they were lying.

"So how many girls have you slept with?" she asked, her head leaning against the chair.

They were situated on the floor between two plush chairs, one behind Hermione and one behind Cato, with the Fire Whiskey between them.

Cato chuckled and seemed to be mentally counting in his head, "No more than...fifteen..."

She studied him carefully and he sighed, picking up the bottle and taking a swig.

She raised an eyebrow and asked, "More or less?"

"I do believe it's my turn to ask a question, dear." he said with a smirk.

She sighed, but motioned for him to ask. But before he could ask Draco walked in the door, looking surprisingly sober.

His eyes grew wide when he spotted the two of them on the floor together. "What the hell mate?" he asked, walking over to them.

"Playing a game. Care to join us?" asked Cato, raising an eyebrow at his friend.

He glanced over at Hermione and noticed her eyes had already been on him. He smirked and sat down by them, a bit closer to Hermione than Cato.

"How do you play?"

At that Hermione spoke up, her voice only slightly slurred, "Well you ask one of us a question, and we can either tell you the truth or lie, but if we lie we have to take a drink of the Fire Whiskey."

"So then why would you lie in the first place, if we'll know anyway?" he questioned.

"Because," she said, a slight smile on her face, "Sometimes it's easier to admit the truth without having to say it to anybody."

He nodded slowly, "Alright,"

Cato smirked and turned his attention to Hermione, "Do you like Draco?"

Her eyes went wide and a slight tint came to her cheeks, but she managed to say, "Depends on how you mean it."

Draco felt like he could throttle his friend, but he was curious to know her answer.

"I mean in the-"

"Uh-uh." she said, holding up her hand. "I answered the question you asked me. It's my turn now."

She thought for a moment, and then looked to Draco, "Why'd you kiss me earlier at the club?"

He smirked and let his eyes trail across her features, she really was a good looking witch...dare he even say beautiful?

No, of course not. He was Draco Fucking Malfoy, he didn't think that.

At least not out loud.

"Because I wanted to."

She was surprised when he didn't take a drink from the bottle, but shrugged it off and leaned back against the chair, closing her eyes momentarily.

She heard a few mumbled things and then she heard someone standing up. When she opened her eyes Cato was standing.

"I'm going to go to bed. Don't get too wasted alright. And I'll take you back to Calista's in the morning."

Before she could protest he had disappeared up the stairs, leaving her alone with Draco.

He was watching her intently until she couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"If you still want to play, it's your turn."

He smiled and asked, "Did you enjoy yourself?"

"No," she said immediately. After a short pause she picked up the bottle and took a sip.

Draco let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, relieved that he wasn't the only one who'd enjoyed their kiss.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked after placing the bottle back on the ground between them.

He looked at her and cocked his head to the side, a smirk on his face, "Because I want to."

"Can you ever answer with anything other than that sentence?" she snapped.

"What do you want me to say?" That stupid smirk still on his face.

"Why are you such and arrogant arse?"

"I think you like it."

She stood up and glared at him, "No, I don't. You walk around here like you're better than everybody. You're arrogant and self centered and you don't give a damn about me or anybody. All you care about is yourself." She spun on her heel and headed for the stairs.

He stood up and grabbed her arm suddenly, pushing her into the wall and knocking the air out of her lungs. "Don't tell me that I don't care Granger. Because you don't know the half of it."

"Get off me." she demanded, her voice a little breathier than she would have liked.

"No." he said, his eyes boring into hers. "You think you know me don't you?"

"I don't pretend to know anybody. That's what _you_ do. _You're_ the one who assumes that you know people. _You're _the one who thinks that just because I'm a bookworm I don't know how to have fun. _You're _the one who thinks that I'm _beneath _you because of-"

He slammed a hand over her mouth and dropped his voice dangerously low, his eyes holding hers with an intensity she'd never seen before.

"I do _not_ think that you are beneath me, Granger. I haven't thought that in a really long time. Give me some credit, because I _have_ changed."

"Good for you Malfoy. What do you want? A pat on the back? You think that because you _changed_ I'm supposed to forget the hell you put me through back at Hogwarts?"

"No," he said, his voice level, "What I want is just for you to hear me out. Just listen to what I have to say."

She snorted, "Yeah right, it really seemed like you wanted to talk at the club."

He sighed and loosened his grip on her arms, sliding them down to her waist, "I can't help it."

She had her hands resting on his chest, comfortingly warm through the fabric of his shirt. He lifted one hand from her hip and used it to brush away a strand of her hair.

She closed her eyes, "Why are you doing this? Why me? It's not like you have trouble getting girls Malfoy."

He chuckled and brought his lips down to her neck, pressing light kisses along the soft flesh before murmuring, "Just because Granger. Bloody hell, do you need a reason for everything."

She tensed up and pushed him away, "Yes! Yes I need a fucking reason!"

He was shocked, but only momentarily. "Well I don't have a reason for you."

"Of course not. You never have to have a reason because every girl just falls into your bed and you shoo them out like they're trash."

"Hermione-"

She ignored him and kept talking, "But I'm not one of those people. I don't sleep with completely arrogant bastards, especially you. We have a past that is anything but nice."

"Damn it Granger, wait." he said when she started to walk away. "You're not...I don't...Granger, you're not like the rest of them."

"Right, I'm the nerdy bookworm who-"

"You are most definitely not a nerd. Especially not in that little dress."

He took satisfaction in the fact that she blushed.

"You never looked at me before tonight, the one night where I dress like the girls you usually get into bed with. You really expect me to believe that you think I'm different. I mean you just said that you didn't have a reason."

"Bullshit. I looked at you plenty Granger. You just weren't looking at me."

She opened and closed her mouth, trying to come up with something to say. She didn't know that he'd been paying her any attention, but she hadn't really seen much of him since they'd left Hogwarts, and they'd done a pretty good job in their last year of avoiding each other.

Finally she looked up at him and asked, "What do you want from me?"

Before Draco could think it through completely he said, "To let me take you on a date."

Hermione's eyes went wide, "What?"

Thinking that he might as well go with it now, he said, "You heard me, Granger."

"Why?"

"Do you have to question everything?"

"If I feel like you're just using that as an excuse to get me into your bed, then yes!" she said, not really angry just completely confused.

"Granger," he said, making sure she was looking dead at him, "I'm not _just _using it as an excuse to get you in my bed, granted I'm not going to lie and say that I don't. _But_," he said, shooting her a look when she tried to interrupt, "That's not the only reason. I would actually like to have a conversation with you that doesn't end in us arguing."

She eyed him, still unsure. "I don't know...besides, I'm sure the last thing you need is to be seen around with a muggle-born. I do know that you run the family business now."

"Don't worry about them." he said easily.

"Malfoy..."

"Oh come on. What's the worst that could happen?"

"I end up sleeping with you." as soon as the words left her mouth she regretted them. The smirk that stretched across Draco's face was as smug as she'd ever seen it.

"Well you know-"

"I'll go, okay? Just no talk about sex. I want an _actual _conversation as you said."

He smiled before he could stop himself.

He was going on a date with Hermione Granger.

_Bloody hell._

It was getting hard for him to keep track of whether or not he was still doing this to prove to Cato that he _could_, or if it was because he really did care for the silly bint.

Was Draco Malfoy, son of a notorious Death Eater, and former Death Eater himself, actually falling for a muggle born witch?

He could literally feel his ancestors turning over in their graves. But for once in his life, he just didn't give a damn.


	5. Blame It On the Strawberries

**I am soooo sorry for not updating in like a month, I got really caught up in trying to work on A Moment In Time, (by the way the next chapter on that is going to be awesome) but I hope this long chapter makes up for it. (:**

* * *

"Where the hell are you taking me?"

Draco had picked up Hermione from Calista's flat not too long ago and was now driving, yes actually driving, her to some unknown location.

Suffice it to say that she wasn't too happy with having to wait to find out where exactly it was that she'd be spending alone time with Draco Malfoy.

"Would you just relax Granger? You'll love it, trust me."

"Trust you? Trust _you_? Are you-"

"Granger," he said, already exasperated with the witch.

She let out a sigh and said, "Fine, just hurry up would you? I'm starving over here."

"Well I've got quite the evening planned." he said, a smirk on his face that she found wasn't as annoying as it had once been.

"I'm sure you do."

Draco just rolled his eyes and ignored her the rest of the car ride, until he pulled up in front of a fancy old Italian style restaurant.

Hermione was pleasantly surprised, but tried not to let it show. They got out of the car and Draco took her arm and walked with her to the door.

"Oh, look at you being all gentleman like." said Hermione, only halfway joking.

He smirked down at her and said, "I have my moments Granger."

"Indeed." she murmured.

They were escorted to a secluded table in the back, lit by candlelight. Draco pulled out her chair for her, and then sat down.

They looked over the menu in comfortable silence before Hermione finally asked, "What the hell am I looking at?"

Draco looked up at her and chuckled. He hadn't taken into consideration that she couldn't speak Italian.

"I'm sorry, I should have thought about that." He moved his chair so that he was next to her and she could tell that he smelled slightly of mint.

He pointed to various things on the menu, explaining what they were, and she ended up picking a pasta he'd recommended.

After their food had come, and they'd relaxed into comfortable conversation, Draco asked, "So what happened with you and the Weasel?"

She groaned, "We didn't see eye to eye on certain things."

"Like what?"

"Oh, you know," she said nonchalantly, "Clothes lying around the flat, shagging whore's like Lavender, not cleaning up dishes in the sink. You know, normal things."

"Normal things? How many times did he cheat on you?" asked a surprised Draco. He'd figured the idiot had cheated on her, but the way she said it made him think that it'd happened on more than one occasion.

"Three, four times?"

"What?" he asked, his voice louder than he expected it to be.

"Shh," said Hermione, a slight smile on her face, "It's no big deal. I didn't love him the way I should have anyway."

He raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

She shrugged, "I loved him like a best friend, not like a boyfriend."

"So why'd you stay with him for so long?"

"Because that's what I was supposed to do." she said simply.

He snorted, "That's stupid."

"So is you shagging every girl in the Wizarding World to make a statement. Everyone knows you're not like the rest of the Malfoy's. You don't want to get married, you don't want to settle down, but that doesn't mean you have to make it so bloody obvious that you're somewhat of a man-whore."

His eyes widened in shock momentarily that quickly turned into laughter. He couldn't deny it, she was right. "Touche Granger."

She smirked and picked up her wine glass, taking a sip. Draco watched as her red lips left a mark on the rim of the looked fucking amazing, not that that was a big shock. She'd grown up quite a bit since their days at Hogwarts.

"So why didn't you try to talk to the Weasel? Seems like your type of thing."

"You can only talk for so long before you realize that nobody's listening." she said softly.

That's when he saw a side of Hermione that he hadn't seen since the war. She was just as lost, if not more so, than he was.

He reached across the table and took her hand in his, surprising her, and said, "At the risk of sounding way lamer than I've ever sounded in my entire life, just know that I'm here, and I'm listening, whenever you need me to."

For a moment Hermione froze, but after a minute she smiled and squeezed his hand, "Thank you."

He smirked, "What? No sarcastic comment?"

She chuckled and shook her head, "Not this time."

He nodded and bit his lip, which Hermione thought was adorable, before asking, "So what's up with you and Cato?"

She raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

"I mean he told me about the night he met you in the bar, and he likes you..."

"And your point was...?"

"Well, I mean do you like him?" he asked, his cheeks turning pink.

She rolled her eyes and said, "Of course I like him. He's sweet and respectful, and handsome, and not a completely arrogant git-_but_," she said, holding up a hand to stop him from saying anything, "I just don't feel that way about him. If I did I definitely wouldn't be on this date with you."

He smirked, "Just can't resist my-"

"I'm trying really hard not to have to punch you tonight Malfoy, let's not push it." she said with a smile.

"You know you love my attitude." he said with a suggestive wink.

She just rolled her eyes, choosing not to acknowledge his comment.

"How about we move on to the next part of this date?" he asked.

She raised an eyebrow, "Should I be afraid?"

"Very," he said with a seductive smirk.

She laughed and followed him back out to the car, where he, once again, wouldn't tell her where they were headed.

Oh well, surprises were good right?

* * *

Draco was currently leading a blindfolded Hermione through Malfoy Manor. He'd apparated them there after dropping his car off at Blaise's house.

"Would you please just tell me where the hell-"

He removed the blindfold and she stopped mid-sentence, completely shocked at what she saw. They were standing in in the middle of the gigantic garden that Draco called his his backyard. It was absolutely breathtaking.

"Oh my goodness..."

"Do you like it?"

He'd set up a charmed gazebo type tent that was made out of gauzy material that you could see through with twinkling fairy lights throughout the material, and underneath it were a few green silk blankets and pillows. A bowl of strawberries sat on one of the blankets with a bottle of chocolate syrup next to it.

"This is amazing." she said, still not really believing that he'd done this for her.

"I figured that you'd still like gardens..."

"What do you mean?" she asked, turning to face him.

"I remember in the few times that we talked in our last year you were always rambling on about the garden you had back at your parents house."

She blinked back a few tears at the mention of her parents, and maybe at the fact that he'd remembered something like that, and about her no less.

"Thank you." she said quietly.

He smiled and stepped closer to her, threading one of his hands through her hair and resting the other on her hip as she wound hers around his neck.

"You're welcome." he whispered, before pressing his lips to hers.

She relaxed into him almost instantly and couldn't believe how comfortable she was with him. But _Merlin_ he was a good kisser.

She ran her hand through his hair, enjoying the feel of the silky strands against her fingers, while he slid his tongue into her mouth, exploring.

He pulled away and looked down at her, a conflicted look on his face, before forcing a smile and taking her hand, leading her over to the blankets.

It wasn't that he wasn't enjoying her company, he was, and that was the problem. He wasn't supposed to actually like her. He wasn't supposed to _want_ to kiss her. He was cursing Cato for goading him into doing this, because all of this was sure to become complicated and messy and she definitely wasn't the type of girl to shag without feelings.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked, bringing him out of his thoughts.

He looked at her and couldn't help but smile, she looked beautiful. Moonlight definitely suited her.

"That I think you should try these strawberries."

She smiled and rolled her eyes, "Fine,"

But before she could reach for one he picked one up and dipped it in the chocolate syrup. "Open up."

She couldn't help but laugh, but did as he asked, biting into the strawberry he held in his fingers. He had to physically stop himself from groaning at how incredibly_sexy _she looked.

She was completely oblivious to this though, and simply leaned back so she was lying on her back looking up at the stars.

Draco thought about it for a split second before he leaned down and captured her lips in another kiss. He smiled at the fact that she tasted like strawberries.

She bit his bottom lip before releasing his mouth and taking another strawberry. "You know, this is quite strange."

He chuckled and stayed in his sitting position, watching her, "Why?"

"Why?" she asked, eyebrow raised, "Because you can't honestly tell me that you pictured this before."

"Not this exactly, no." he said, remembering a few of the dreams he'd had.

She rolled her eyes and sat up, a few of her curls falling over her forehead. He leaned forward and brushed them away, his hand linger to trace her cheeks.

"If I ask you something, I don't want you to get mad at me, just answer me yes or no okay?" she asked quietly.

He raised an eyebrow but nodded, intrigued.

"Do you want to sleep with me?"

His mouth dropped open and he stammered out a response, "W-what do you mean?"

She smirked and moved so she was lying down again. "I thought it was obvious? I came here to forget about Ron, have fun, and let loose. I figured if it's as easy as you said it was at the club that night, about us being attracted to each other, then why not right?"

He didn't know what the hell had gotten into her, but he didn't really care. She looked amazing and he'd been fighting against half a hard on since they'd gotten to his place.

In one quick movement he was on top of her. Her eyes were wide in shock that quickly turned to lust as he started kissing her with more passion than before. He slid his tongue into her mouth and dueled with hers, until she finally gave in, breaking away from the kiss.

He groaned and pushed her back far enough to pull her shirt off and toss it onto the ground.

Her skin was satiny smooth and he could hear her take in a sharp breath when he kissed and slid his tongue along her collarbone.

"Let's go inside." She whispered breathlessly.

He picked her up and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her lips against his jaw line while he grabbed his wand and apparated them upstairs.

He gently lowered her onto the bed and laid down next to her, his hand pressed flat against her stomach.

She lifted her hand and pulled his face to hers and kissed him and he shifted so that he was on top of her completely.

She ran her hands over his back and he lowered his lips to her neck. She moaned, arching her back and pressing into him. Draco stifled his own moan as her hips moved against his.

He moved her bra strap down and kissed her shoulder, doing the same to the other side, and she leaned up far enough so that he could slide his hand to her back and unhook her bra.

When she laid back down his breath caught in his throat and he couldn't help but stare at her. She was _perfect._ He trailed a hand down the valley between her chest and she blushed at his touch.

Draco leaned back down and pressed his mouth to hers, squeezing her breast with one hand and bracing himself on the bed with the other.

"Malfoy," she moaned when he moved his mouth down and kissed a trail to her breasts.

He gently moved his tongue across her nipple, making it hard within seconds and did the same to the other side. She grabbed his hair and pulled, twisting underneath him.

He moved back up and kissed her softly and she trailed her hands down to the waistband of his jeans, tugging slightly.

He moved off her and pulled them down. She blushed when he bent down and unbuttoned her pants with his teeth and slid down her pants and underwear.

She laughed breathlessly and he couldn't help but stare at how perfect she looked—again. Here Hermione looked so open and vulnerable an _unlike_ herself.

Her brown curls spilled out over the pillow, her creamy skin covered in a thin sheen of sweat, and her big, bright toffee eyes sparkled up at him as she bit her lip.

She pulled him back down on top of her and kissed him, aiming to take his breath away like he did with her.

She twisted so that she was on top, straddling his hips. She slid he hands down his chest and slid one finger teasingly under the waistband of his boxers.

He looked up at her, a crooked smile on his face, as he nodded. She slowly slid down his boxers and ran her hands up the insides of his thighs and he moaned, taking in a shaky breath.

She took his penis in her hand and gently kissed up the shaft and stopped at the head, repeatedly flicking her tongue out. After a while he moaned louder and grabbed her arms pulling her back up to him.

"If you would've kept going we would've had to call it a night. And I'm nowhere near done with you Love." He said pressing his lips to hers with a smirk.

He rolled her over onto her back and spread her legs apart with his knees. She could feel herself blushing, but tried to will it away as he kissed his way down her stomach. He looked up, his eyes seductive. She nodded and he moved down the bed so he was laying between her legs and she could feel his breath on the insides of her thighs.

He pressed his lips to her core and she tried to still her heartbeat and bit back a moan. He pushed her legs further apart and left one hand on the inside of her thigh while moving the other one right above her clit, moving just enough to make her want him more.

He slowly licked up and stopped right before the place where she wanted him most.

"Malfoy, you're such a tease.

Her voice was breathless and her hands were threaded in his hair, but he wanted her _badly_, and wasn't going to rush anything.

He trailed his tongue over her small opening and finally moved his mouth over her clit. She immediately started squirming underneath him and he moved his hands to her hips to keep her from moving out from under him.

"Oh my god Malfoy I can't." she gasped pulling at his hair, but he continued to suck on her until he felt her shaking. He didn't want her to come yet so he moved back up to her mouth and kissed her.

She wrapped her arms and legs around him and he couldn't help but smirk. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

"Please," she said, her voice breathless.

He brought his lips to her neck and positioned himself at her entrance, rubbing over her wet core a few times, before slowly easing himself inside her.

"Oh gods," she moaned, her nails digging into his back.

He captured her lips in a kiss, covering one of her moans, as he began pumping in and out of her at a steady pace.

He couldn't believe how fucking _amazing _she felt around him, she was so hot, so _tight._

He groaned and broke away from her lips, kissing and biting her neck.

Hermione loved being able to hear all the noises he was making, even though she'd never been turned on by anyone else's noises during sex.

Then again, this was Draco Malfoy, and everything he did was damn near perfect.

"Fuck Granger," he grunted, moving in and out of her at a faster pace.

"Ohh gods...I'm think I'm going to-" her words were cut of by a load moan when she felt Draco reach between their bodies and rub her bundle of nerves in quick circles.

He moaned and said, "Look at me."

Hermione forced herself to meet his intense silver gaze, her stomach in a tight coil. "Ohh shit." she panted, her nails raking down his back.

"I want you to look at me when you come," he said, his gaze focused solely on her, "Only at me. Understand?"

She was almost too far gone to respond, so she just nodded, biting her lip in an attempt to remember to keep her eyes on him.

All of a sudden it was like stars exploded behind her eyelids, and her back arched up off the bed, but all the while she kept eye contact with him.

Draco bit his lip, trying to pump through her orgasm, but he hadn't expected her to look so fucking _erotic_. I mean this was _Granger_ for Merlin's sake.

When her orgasm had passed she focused back on him, and he looked stunning. His muscles were straining to support his weight over her, his platinum blonde hair stuck to his forehead and his eyes were liquid silver.

She lifted her hand to his face and pulled him down to kiss her, while she wrapped her legs around her waist, causing him to moan against her mouth.

He was close, she could tell.

"Now how about you say my name, my _first _name, when you come?" she said a smirk on her face.

His eyes widened in shock momentarily, but she clenched her walls around him and he took a shuddering breath before looking at her and nodding.

His thrusts became erratic and his moans became louder. He dropped his head down and started placing sloppy kisses along her neck. Then it hit him like a train, and it was like nothing he'd ever felt before. And somehow in his euphoria clouded mind, he remembered what she had said.

"Fuck, Hermione." he moaned, his breath ghosting over her ear.

Hermione was so turned on by hearing him moan her name, that she bit down on his shoulder and came again. He relaxed against her, careful not to crush her, and placed soft kisses against her collarbone.

She was surprised at how...tender he was being, but she couldn't deny that she liked it. Plus the sex...holy _fuck_ it had been amazing.

He slowly pulled out of her and rolled onto his back next to her. Both of them lie, stared up at the ceiling, trying to catch their breath.

"Wow," she said, her eyes still on the ceiling.

He chuckled and turned to look at her, enjoying the view of Hermione, her breasts moving up and down as she tried to steady her breathing, her hair splayed out around her, and her skin seemed to be shimmering in the dim lighting of his bedroom.

His bedroom where he'd just fucked Granger.

His bedroom where he'd just had the best sex he'd ever had.

She turned her head and smiled, "What?"

"Nothing, you just..."

"I just what?"

"I called you Hermione." he blurted.

At that she laughed, the sound forcing him to smile as well, it was infectious.

"What's wrong with that? It is my name."

"Yeah, and Draco's my name, doesn't mean you call me that."

She smirked and within seconds she was straddling his waist and kissing his neck. She worked her way up from his collarbone to his ear, pausing to whisper, "You think you're up for a round two, Draco?"

He growled, literally growled, and flipped her over, already hard for the witch again, and said, "Love, I'm always up." he said with a wink.

She laughed and said, "You're so crude."

"You weren't complaining a few seconds ago." he said, with a smug look as he eased into her again.

"I'm about to start complaining now if you don't start to _move_."

And that's how they spent the night, a tangled mess of limbs and heavy breathing. And believe it or not, that night Hermione Granger stayed with Draco Malfoy.


	6. Are You Willing?

Hermione woke up to the feeling of soft kisses being placed along her neck. She smiled slightly and turned so she was on her back and looked at him.

He smirked and trailed a hand up her stomach, "Good morning."

Somehow everything came crashing down with those two words and she felt like she needed to get as far away from him as possible.

She sat up reached down to the floor, sliding on her bra and panties underneath the covers, before getting out of bed and _accio-_ing the rest of her clothes to her.

"What's wr-"

"Don't," she said, walking over to the mirror he had on the wall, attempting to fix her hair.

Draco groaned, he should have seen this coming. He _knew_ she wasn't the type to have one night stands. Although at this point he wasn't too sure how he felt about it either.

He pulled his boxers on and walked over to her. "Is this going to be one of those 'the sex was great, but let's never mention it ever happened' type things?"

She turned around and frowned, trying to reason the situation out in her head. What he was saying sounded like a good idea, but she knew she'd never be able to just forget about it.

And quite frankly he couldn't either.

She sighed, "No."

"No?" he asked, eyebrow raised.

"No, I mean what sense does that make? It happened, we both wanted it to happen, so now we just move past it."

"Move...past it?"

"Well you don't want a relationship, not with me and not with anyone, and I certainly didn't expect this, so doesn't that make sense?" she asked, her voice lacking any real emotion.

"Is that what you want?"

"Does it even matter?"

"Whatever, just get out Hermione." he said, walking out of his bedroom, extremely pissed off.

Hermione, on the other hand, was completely frozen. He had called her Hermione. That _had _to be a sign. But of what? Then again, like she said, 'did it even matter?'

Instead of trying to find him and ask she decided to do what he'd said.

She left.

* * *

Draco didn't know what he'd wanted from Hermione, but somehow what he'd gotten wasn't what he'd wanted. Sure, he'd wanted a one night stand, at first, but he couldn't help wanting to keep her around.

He had actually gotten to know a little bit about her while they were at the restaurant, and he found that he _liked_ her. She was interesting, beautiful, intelligent, funny, and witty. She was everything he'd ever pictured himself being able to settle down with.

But she was Hermione Granger, and he was Draco Malfoy. It just didn't work.

And that pissed him off. Not only because it was true, but because she just accepted it so easily, as if it didn't bother her one bit that they didn't have much of a chance of being together.

Then again, he didn't know if he _wanted_ to be with her. He just knew that he enjoyed her company, she was definitely good in bed, and she was able to compete with him in an intellectual conversation.

He was muttering a string of expletives as he apparated back to Cato's house in Rome.

"What's got your knickers in a twist?" asked Cato. He was sitting at the kitchen table with a newspaper in his hand.

When Draco didn't respond he sighed and said, "Oh, is it because you saw the paper?"

Draco's head snapped up and he asked, "What paper?"

"_The Daily Prophet_. Melinda mailed it to me. Said there was something interesting in here, and _bam_! Looks like you and Hermione made the front page. Must have been one hell of a date."

"_What?_" he asked, trying to keep his voice down.

"Shit, I thought you knew." he said, handing the paper to Draco.

The headline read:

**Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger A Couple?**

**The pair were seen getting rather cozy at a secluded Italian restaurant in Rome, Italy last night. It seems as though Malfoy Unlimited's owner Draco Malfoy, and renowned War hero, and part of the Golden Trio's Hermione Granger were out on a date, enjoying light conversation. They were said to be seen leaving together at around nine. Where they went is unknown, but one can only assume that they went back to Malfoy Manor for a bit more fun. **

He was going to kill Rita Skeeter. How the hell she'd even managed to figure out that they'd been on a date all the way in Rome was beyond him, but Rita definitely had her ways.

"Hermione's going to freak out." said Draco, running a hand through his hair.

"So did you do it?"

"Shut up."

"No really. I'm just curious because you said-"

"Cato," said Draco through clenched teeth, "It's none of your fucking business. Just let it go."

Cato just rolled his eyes and took the paper back, continuing to read the morning news.

Draco sulked over to the counter and scribbled a quick note to Hermione.

_'I would stay away from The Daily Prophet today._

_-DM_

He attached the note to his owl and then walked into the kitchen, debating on whether or not he'd be able to hear her screams from there.

* * *

Hermione had decided to take a shower, and when she stepped out she noticed Draco's owl on her windowsill. She quickly opened the window, letting the bird in, and then went to go get dressed.

When she walked back into the kitchen she read the note, and her stomach dropped.

She conjured up a copy of _The Daily Prophet_ and the instant she did, she wished she'd listened to Draco. How had they even been able to write this article in the few hours they'd had?

Rita Skeeter was no doubt behind this.

Her friends were going to have heart attacks when they found out-if they didn't already know.

She groaned and tried to refrain from ripping her hair out.

She took a deep breath and tried to figure out what the hell she should do. Probably nothing. Things like this were just gossip and sooner or later something else would be more interesting. So until then she thought she'd just have to deal with.

She grabbed a piece of parchment and sat down, attempting to write to Draco in hopes that maybe it'd be easier on paper.

_I'm sorry they found out about the date. I know that's probably the last thing you need right now, what with running your father's business and all. And I'm sorry about this morning. It was just a one night stand, and no reason to get so dramatic. I hope you enjoy the rest of your time in Rome, and hopefully it won't be too terrible when you return to London. _

_-HG_

Without giving herself time to chicken out, she attached the note to his owl and sent him off.

A few minutes later Calista woke up and walked into the kitchen with a smug smile on her face.

"Where were you at last night? I didn't hear you come home."

Hermione groaned and dropped her head onto the table. "Don't act as if you don't know."

Calista chuckled and sat down across from her. "How was he?"

"Calista!"

"What?" she shrugged, "I'm curious. But by the look on your face I can assume it was pretty amazing. When are you going to see him again?"

"I'm not." she mumbled, dropping her head back onto the table.

"What? Why?"

"Because, _The Daily Prophet _made our date front page news, and his parents are likely going to kill him, and my friends are likely going to kill me. If I ever go back to London anyway." she added the last part quietly.

"Who gives a damn what his parents think?"

"_He _does."

"How do you know? Did he _say_ that, or are you just assuming?" asked Calista, with a knowing look.

Hermione sighed, "It doesn't matter. His parents aren't just going to stand by and let this happen. Besides, it didn't _mean_ anything. It was just sex."

"If it was just sex it wouldn't be affecting you like this. And on going back to London, you know I'll support whatever decision you make. But if you choose to stay here it should be because you like it, not because you're running from your problems." With that she stood up and placed her cup in the sink before grabbing her purse.

"I've got to go do some shopping, I should be back in a few hours. Don't think too hard." she added with a smile.

Hermione nodded and watched as she disappeared out the door. Taking a look around she decided that she shouldn't spend her day cooped up inside Calista's apartment. She needed to get out, get some fresh air, and really think about whether or not she was going back to London.

She grabbed her wand and some money before she headed out.

* * *

Hermione had been walking through the streets of Italy for a while now, and she was still no closer to deciding what she was going to do then she had been a few hours ago.

She'd been in Rome for two months and she really loved everything about it. The atmosphere, the people, the fresh start, but she missed her friends.

Then again she wasn't so sure how happy they were if they'd seen the article - which they no doubt had. Her cell phone had been ringing non-stop, but she'd been to afraid to answer it.

She let out a frustrated sigh and headed into a small cafe, getting a coffee, before heading back out to walk by the canal.

She stopped short when she saw Cato and Draco walking in her direction. Looking around she quickly moved so she was leaning against one of the buildings, her head down.

She picked up some of their conversation when they paused to look at the canal.

"...can't just expect her to admit how she feels when she knows that you won't do the same."

She could tell that Draco was frustrated when he ran a hand through his hair and replied, "How would she know that? She didn't stick around long enough to find out."

"Well it's not like you two have the best history."

"You think I don't know that." he snapped. "That's why this is so bloody infuriating."

"Well maybe you should do something about that." said Cato.

"Right. You didn't see the letter she sent me this morning."

"Well you did tell her to get out earlier this morning."

Draco was about to say something, but Cato held up his hand, "Why don't you just admit how you feel about her?"

"You want to know the truth? Fine. I like her. I bloody _like her_. And I shouldn't. Nothing in me should want to be with her, but I do. I do and I have no idea how to tell her."

Just then Cato's eyes flicked over to Hermione and he smiled.

"I think you just did."

Draco turned around and their eyes met, and in that moment Hermione wanted nothing more than to disappear into the brick of the building she was leaning against.

Draco liked her. He _liked_ her.

How did she feel?

She didn't know. She was confused. It's not that she didn't have feelings for him, because she most certainly did, but she didn't know how far those feelings went.

"Uh...hey." she said awkwardly, stepping away from the building.

Draco didn't say anything, just stared at her.

Cato, trying to force the two idiots to see the light, said, "I'm going to get out of here. I don't care what you do, but you're not allowed back until you talk to her." he said to Draco. "Later Hermione."

They both watched as Cato disappeared into a crowd of people.

Hermione looked back at Draco and took a deep breath, "Do you...want to go to lunch or something?"

He looked at her, and then looked back at where Cato had gone, "Fine."

He followed her further down the street until they reached a little bistro. They decided to sit outside, and once they'd ordered they fell into an awkward silence.

"So...um...did you mean what you said?"

He looked up at her and snorted, "Does it matter?"

She flinched, realizing he was throwing her own words back at her. She knew that it was just a defense mechanism though. Ron and Harry used to do the same thing when they were hurt or upset.

"It does matter, actually." she said, summoning courage from Merlin-knows-where.

He raised an eyebrow, "Really? Because from the letter you sent me this morning, it doesn't seem like it."

"Look," she said, "I'm confused, I'm scared, and that doesn't make it better, but if you want to focus on the past there are a few things we both could have done better."

He glared at her, "What the hell are you scared for?"

She snorted, "You're kidding me right? For one our past-"

"Here we go again."

"Yes! Yes, here we go again! I'm not supposed to like you. I'm not supposed to _want _you."

His eyes went wide, "You...want me?"

She rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair. "Maybe."

He smirked and leaned forward, "Well I _know_ I want you."

She couldn't help but smile, but then she blushed and looked away, "This isn't supposed to happen. I mean your parents are-"

"Going to flip out. I know. But I don't care. They can think what they want." he said with a shrug.

"Yeah, see that makes me think that this is yet another one of your ideas to make people see that you're not like Lucius." she said, shaking her head.

"Are you kidding me? Did you not here what Cato and I were talking about?"

She didn't say anything.

"I can repeat it if you want." he said with a smirk on his face.

"I heard what-"

"I like you Granger. I fucking _like _you. Should I say it louder?" he taunted as he saw the blush start to creep onto her cheeks.

"_Quit it, Malfoy._" she said, covering her face with her hands.

He smirked and stood up, opening his mouth to no doubt _yell_ that he liked her, but she stood up and pressed her lips against his.

He smiled into the kiss and pulled away, chuckling slightly. "Does that mean you're willing to try this? Us?"

She smirked and stood up on her tip toes to place a soft kiss to his lips. "Are you?"

At that he laughed, his silver eyes sparkling, "Yes, I'm willing."

She smiled, "Good."

He kissed her again and silently sent a thank you to Cato for being as stubborn as he was.


	7. Surprise Guest

**I'm sorry...but really...how could I resist writing a lemon? (;**

**And for my lovely reader _ahhhLOVE _I put some Blaise in this chapter for you. (: Hope you like it, and I might actually keep him around, because, well I kind of miss him too.**

**Leave me reviews, they make me happy (: **

* * *

Draco and Hermione were sitting with their backs against the headboard, cuddled up on his bed at Cato's house, watching a movie on a TV that Hermione had conjured into his room.

"So what's the point of this again?" he asked.

He didn't really care about the movie, and truth be told he hadn't really been watching it in the first place. He just wanted to hear her talk.

She rolled her eyes, not fooled. "Well maybe you should pay attention."

He chuckled and turned so he was placing light kisses along her neck. Hermione couldn't help but smile. She had to admit that she'd much rather be kissing him than watching a movie she'd seen five million times, but she was stubborn. He had promised he'd watch a movie with her, and she was intent on making him keep that promise.

"Draco, watch the movie."

"This is much, _much_ more fun for me." he said, his voice slightly muffled by her neck.

Hermione went to open her mouth to protest, but was cut off when he gently bit her pulse point. She let out a soft moan and he smirked against her skin, kissing his way up to her lips.

"But you promised..." she weakly protested.

"And I will, just not right now Love." he whispered against her lips.

In a flash Hermione was straddling his waist, a sexy smile on her face.

"Then I get to be in charge."

He groaned involuntarily. He usually hated it when women he was with tried to be dominant, but something about Hermione doing it turned him on.

He simply nodded, "Okay,"

She smiled and ran her hands through his hair while he slid his hands to her thighs and moved them up to her waist.

She leaned down and captured his lips in a kiss, their tongues fighting for dominance. Draco moved one of his hands to her hair, pulling her closer, while she began to slowly move her hips above him.

He groaned into her mouth and had to resist the urge to push her back onto the bed so that he was on top. She could already feel him start to get hard beneath her and smirked.

"Is someone excited?" she murmured, her lips ghosting over his ear before latching onto his neck.

He let out a shaky chuckle and said, "What gave it away?"

He moved his hands under her shirt and pulled it off in one fluid motion, his following closely behind it. She ran her small hands over his toned chest, and unlike their first time, she actually got to _look_ at him.

And boy was he a sight to behold. All alabaster skin, toned muscles, flat stomach, piercing gray eyes, platinum blonde hair...he was like a sculpture-all sharp angles and obvious perfection.

She brought her lips back to his and he moved his hand to her back, deftly undoing the clasp of her bra and tossing it off the bed to join their shirts.

His breath caught in his throat when he looked at her, just as it had the first time. She just looked so..._perfect._

As strange as it sounded to himself to be thinking that Hermione Granger, of all people, looked perfect, he couldn't deny that it was true.

She reminded him of an angel, something so beautiful that he was halfway worried he would somehow taint her with how _im_perfect he thought he was.

She brought him out of his thoughts with her soft voice, "You okay?"

He smiled up at her and said, "Never better."

She smiled and he moved his hands to her jeans, undoing the button.

She moved off him and took them off, kicking them into a corner while he did the same. This time he was laying down on the bed, and she moved next to him, teasingly rubbing her hand over the bulge in his boxers.

She slowly started sliding them down, the silk rubbing tantalizingly against his sensitive erection. "Shit," he hissed, trying to get her to remove the blasted garment already.

What seemed like a lifetime later she tossed them onto the floor, moved to straddle him, and took him into her hand, placing light kisses up the shaft to the head. He let out a shuddering breath and laced his hands into her hair.

She smirked and took him into her mouth as far as she could, moving her hand over what she couldn't as she bobbed her head up and down.

"Oh fuck," he groaned, his hands in her hair tightening as she sped up her pace, stopping ever so often to suck on the tip. After a few minutes he felt his balls clench and he pulled her up and flipped them over in one fluid movement.

She didn't have time to protest as he caught her lips in a kiss and moved his hand to her panties, gently stroking her through the material.

She moaned into his mouth and said, "Please,"

"Please what?" he asked with a smirk.

"Touch me,"

He wasted no time in ridding her of her underwear and kissed a trail down her stomach to her core. He looked up at her through his fringe, a sexy as sin smirk on his face, before he lowered his head to her heat. He started off with slow strokes of his tongue, but she was panting and begging him for more. So he sped up, sucking her bundle of nerves into his mouth as he inserted one long finger into her wet entrance.

She moaned even louder, her hips rising off the bed, as he added a second finger. "Oh gods," she panted.

He felt her clench around his fingers and he continued to pump in and out of her until her orgasm passed.

He kissed his way back up to her mouth and she wrapped her arms around his neck, their mouths clashing together in a fierce battle of teeth and tongues.

After a few moments Hermione flipped them both over, determined to be in charge like she said she'd be, and Draco didn't complain. She sat up on her knees and slowly eased herself down on him, and they both let out a groan at the contact.

She slowly began moving up and down, her hands pressed against his chest, and his on her waist. He slid one hand up her side and to the back of her neck, pulling her down so he could kiss her.

He began to move his hips up to meet hers, increasing their speed and managing to hit her g-spot every time. She broke away and let out a long moan, fisting her hands in the blanket on either side of Draco's head.

His fingers dug almost painfully into her hips, and would no doubt leave bruises, as he tried to keep himself from coming. He sat up and wrapped his arms around her while she continued to move up and down on him.

From this position she could hear him moaning and the occasional 'fuck' that would slip past his lips, and she loved it. She moved her hands to his face and kissed him, before he shifted and hit that special spot again, sending her over the edge.

He felt her nails dig into his back, coupled with her walls fluttering around him, and he felt like he was going to explode.

"Hermione...please." he panted, hoping she understood.

She simply nodded and he flipped them over so he was on top of her. He brought his head down to her neck and began placing open mouth kisses there as he began to pump in and out of her, desperate to find his release. It only took four or five more pumps before they came together, moaning each others names.

He collapsed, rolling onto his back and pulling her with him so she was laying across his chest, trying to catch her breath.

She looked over at the TV and the movie had ended and was back to the start menu.

Seeing where her gaze went he chuckled, still a bit breathless, and said, "Now you can't tell me that watching some movie was better than that."

She smiled and turned so she was looking at him, "You still have to watch a movie with me."

He rolled his eyes, "I will. I just couldn't help myself this time." he said, trailing a hand up her spine, giving her goosebumps.

She sighed and cuddled closer into his side, nuzzling her face against his neck. He smiled at the feeling and tightened his arm around her waist while pulling the covers higher up around them.

He noticed that she had dozed off, and not soon after, he did too.

* * *

"Hey mate! What are you doing here?"

Draco had walked downstairs to find Cato and Blaise sitting in the living room talking.

Blaise smiled and stood up, "Cato invited me, and since we haven't really seen each other in a while I thought it'd be cool to come..."

By the way he trailed off Draco knew there was more to it, and he could already guess what it was. "Did my parents send you here?"

He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, "Yeah, they saw the papers and well...is it true?"

Draco smiled and his eyes flicked toward the stairs before he nodded, "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

Blaise smiled, "Good for you mate."

They sat down on the couch with Cato and Draco asked, "So...how mad are they?"

Blaise raised an eyebrow, "They're your parents, how mad do you think they are?"

Draco let out a sigh and said, "Pretty fucking livid."

Blaise nodded, "That about sums it up."

Cato, trying to lighten the mood, asked, "Is Hermione asleep?"

Blaise's eyes went wide and he looked at the stairs, "She's _here_?"

Draco and Cato chuckled and Draco answered, "Yeah, she's asleep. I guess she's just tired out." he added with a wink.

Blaise and Cato chuckled and shook their heads, already used to Draco's crude sense of humor.

"You should know something though." said Blaise, his expression suddenly not as carefree as it had been moments before.

"What?"

"Your parents have been talking to the press about the situation."

"What have they been saying?" he asked, already dreading the answer.

"That if you don't come home, and with a damn good explanation, they're going to disown you."

Draco snorted, "Let them. I _own_ the business, and there isn't a fucking thing they can do about it."

Blaise nodded, "That's what I thought, but you know how your parents are. They'll say anything they need to, to get a reaction."

Cato shook his head, "No offense, but your parents are fucking idiots. Hermione is probably the best thing that's happened to you."

Draco couldn't help but agree, and Blaise had long ago thought that the bright witch would be a perfect match for Draco. Especially after he had found out that he'd harbored a bit of a crush on her.

Blaise was just happy that his best friend was sticking to _one_ girl for a change.

All of a sudden the three of them heard yelling and got up, heading into Draco's room. They found Hermione, yanking on her jacket while yelling into her cell phone.

"How would you know? You never fucking asked me what I wanted! You never cared enough before I left so don't even try it now that you see one _stupid_ article in _The Daily Prophet_ written by that stupid Rita Skeeter."

Draco guessed that Weaselbee was the one she was talking to, and was quickly proven correct in his guess when she started talking again.

"Are you _kidding _me? I'm not the one who cheated in our relationship. That was all you. Or did you forget that part?" she snapped.

Cato and Blaise looked to Draco for answers, but he just shook his head, the three of them remaining in the doorway.

"Oh please, don't bring Draco into this. He's not the reason I left and you know it."

Ron seemed to have been yelling, because they all heard his reply.

"Oh so it's just a coincidence that right after we break up you're shagging him?"

Hermione paused for a moment, contemplating on if she should just hang up, but then decided to do something Malfoy-worthy.

"Well I had to find somebody who could do it right." she said with a smirk.

The three men in the doorway broke out into laughter and Hermione looked over at them and couldn't help smiling as well.

"Oh whatever Hermione. His parents will probably put him back in his place soon enough so-"

Before he could finish Draco had taken the phone from Hermione and said, "My parents are none of your concern, and as far as Hermione goes, she isn't either. Our relationship isn't your fucking business and if I have to tell you again you're going to wish that you'd listened to me the first time."

His voice was threatening, and Hermione could see why so many people feared him back at Hogwarts and during the war. He was bloody intimidating.

"Whatever," snapped Ron, after a long pause, and hung up the phone.

Draco rolled his eyes and handed the phone back to Hermione, "You okay?"

She nodded, "Yeah I'm fine. Hey Cato, hey Blaise. It's nice seeing you again, it's been a while."

Blaise smiled, Hermione sure had grown up, and by the way Draco was looking at her, he could tell that he had some pretty serious feelings for the witch.

"It's nice to see you too, although maybe not at the best time." he said with a chuckle.

She waved her hand in the air, brushing away the thought, "Nonsense. Ron is a royal idiot who just isn't worth it."

Draco smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist, pressing a kiss to her temple.

"I'm glad you finally see it my way."

Hermione rolled her eyes and said, "Oh shut up. I do not see it-"

"How about we all go out to lunch?" suggested Blaise, trying to keep the two from killing each other. No matter how far they may have come, they still argued just like they had back at school.

"Sounds like a great idea, I'm starving." said Cato.

Hermione and Draco nodded, agreeing. "Definitely. Let's go."

The four of them headed down onto the busy street and Hermione looked to Blaise and asked, "So are you staying for a while?"

Blaise smiled, "I think so. I mean it's not like I have a job or anything."

Draco rolled his eyes. Blaise worked for him in the business, but was always making jabs at the fact that it seemed as though neither one of them ever really had to go into work for anything.

Hermione smiled, "Well that's great. It's been strange seeing Draco without you considering how close the two of you were in school."

Draco chuckled, "Yeah, it's been a bit strange, but Cato and I have been friends for about the same amount of time."

"Not that anybody would assume you'd hang out with anybody as good looking as me." joked Cato with a smirk that rivaled Draco's.

"Oh shut up. It seems as though _I'm _the only one with a girlfriend." said Draco, taking Hermione's hand in his.

"And what a bloody shock that is!" said Cato with a chuckle.

Blaise nodded and Hermione just rolled her eyes, focusing on the people around her instead.

When she tuned back in Blaise was talking to her.

"I don't know what you did, but please continue. He's actually being, dare I say it, _nice_."

She and Cato laughed and Draco scowled at them. "Shove it."

"Oh come on mate, it's not a bad thing." said Cato following Blaise into a restaurant.

Draco looked down at Hermione with a small smirk and said, "No, it's definitely not a bad thing."

* * *

**Basically a bit of fluff. Hope it wasn't too bad. Until net time lovelies. **


	8. Loose Ends

**This is basically just to tie up some loose ends with Hermione and her friends, where exactly Draco and Hermione are in their relationship, etc. **

**Fluff, fluff, fluffity, fluff, fluff.**

* * *

Hermione had been ignoring her cell phone for the past two days in hopes that maybe her friends would stop calling. It was cowardly, she knew, but she didn't know what to tell them, and by the voicemail that Ron and Harry left, they were less than happy.

"You can't ignore them forever you know." drawled Draco from his spot on the couch.

Calista and Cato nodded in agreement, but Blaise shook his head.

"I think she needs to give them time to calm down. If she answers the phone now they're just going to gang up on her and it's going to lead to an argument."

Hermione gave Blaise a thankful look but Draco snorted, "You can't just run from your problems."

"So how about you go deal with your parents then?" snapped Hermione.

"We're not talking about me."

"Well maybe we should be." she said.

Draco opened his mouth but Cato interrupted, "Hey now. Let's not get into an argument about it. Hermione, you need to deal with your friends, and Draco, you need to deal with your parents."

They both sighed and said, "I'm sorry." at the same time.

They chuckled and Draco asked, "Forgive me?"

Hermione smiled and moved so she was sitting on his lap, "Of course."

He kissed her cheek and said, "Well counselor Cato, how do you suppose I go about dealing with my parents?"

Cato scowled at his sarcasm, but replied nonetheless, "I think both of you should go talk to them."

"Are you insane?" asked Hermione, not liking the idea of having to confront Lucius and Narcissa. Especially since she'd actually have to be on the _first _floor instead of his bedroom.

The first floor where she was tortured during the war. Yeah. Not really something she wanted to revisit anytime soon.

"Think about it Hermione, if they see you maybe they'll realize-"

"No," she said, interrupting Cato and standing up.

"Hermione," he tried, attempting to reason with her.

"No," she said again. "I'm not going there. End of story."

Cato looked to Draco for help, but he shook his head, following Hermione outside.

"Hermione," he said, catching her hand.

"Draco, please don't." she said quietly.

"Can you just tell me why?"

She yanked her hand out of his and said, "Because _I don't want to._"

He rolled his eyes, "Since when are you-"

"Since I got tortured there Draco! Excuse me for not being particularly keen on facing that again."

He could have slapped himself for being so stupid. He hadn't thought about that. Not that he liked to in the first place. That wasn't exactly a great time for him either.

"I'm sorry." he said quietly, pulling her towards him.

She relaxed slightly, trying to tell herself she was being stupid. Those times were long gone-yet and still she didn't want to face it.

"You don't have to come, especially not to meet my parents."

She didn't say anything, just stood in his arms, enjoying the feeling.

"You okay?"

She nodded, "It's not that I don't want to be there when you tell them, I just don't want to be at the Manor."

"I suppose I could ask them to meet us somewhere."

"Although you might want to leave off the part about me being there." she said with a small smile.

He chuckled, "Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

She let out a sigh and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.

"What are you doing?"

"Biting the bullet."

She took a deep breath and dialed Harry's number.

He picked up after the second ring and said, "Nice of you to finally call back."

"I didn't know what to say to you. And I knew you were mad. I figured it might be better to wait until you'd actually let me explain myself." she said quietly.

Harry sighed and said, "Alright. Explain."

"You know why I came to Rome."

"Yeah, to get away from Ron." he answered.

"Well yes, but not _just_ because of Ron. I wanted a chance to start over in a place where nobody knew me." she said slowly.

"And Malfoy fits into this how?"

"Well Calista and I were at a club and he was there too...and then there was this thing with Calista being drunk and I had to stay the night with Cato and Draco and-"

"You _what_? You're a witch Hermione. You have this thing called a wand and you could have apparated here for the night." he interrupted.

She rolled her eyes, "Are you going to let me explain or not?"

He let out a frustrated sigh but told her to continue.

"At first I was just as put off by him as you are, but Harry, he really has changed."

"You mean to tell me-"

"He's still an arrogant arse," she said, talking over him, "But he's a _good_ person. He treats me right, he-"

"Well that's all fine and dandy, but what about his parents? Do you know the kind of shit they're telling the press? It's pretty bad Mione." he said.

"About disowning Draco right?"

He laughed, "Right, maybe two days ago. Now they're talking about how their son must be under a spell. A spell that _you _put him under, because, and I quote, 'there is no way our son would entertain such a frivolous idea.'."

She looked over at Draco, but he was staring out at the street, clenching and unclenching his fist.

"Great. Just bloody _brilliant_." She said with a groan, already dreading setting foot in London.

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think anybody really believes the crap they're saying." said Harry, trying to console her.

"How's Ginny? Is she really mad?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Surprisingly, no. She's Bat Bogey-ed Rita Skeeter a few times on your behalf." he said chuckling.

She laughed and said, "Tell her I'm going to stop by in a few days and visit."

There was a pause and he asked, "When are you coming home...to stay?"

She'd been dreading that question.

"I don't know Harry...I like it here." she said softly.

"Well yeah, but Mione, this is your home, all your friends are here. Hell, even Draco lives here."

That was another something that she had to think about. Especially since she hadn't exactly voiced to him that she actually intended to stay in Rome.

"I know all you guys are there, and yeah I know Draco lives there too, but at one point in my life I'm going to have to do something for me."

And Harry understood that. "Well you better expect that there will be waterworks when you tell Ginny."

She smiled, "Hey, nothings set in stone yet. I don't know what I'm doing, and for once, I'm just not worried about it."

"Good for you Mione." he said, a smile in his voice.

"I'll let you know when I'm coming over okay?"

"Alright, love you."

"Love you too." she said, before hanging up.

She turned to Draco and could tell he was upset.

"Draco,"

"When were you going to tell me?" he asked, not looking at her.

"Didn't you hear me? I don't know what I'm doing. I didn't think it was that big of a deal."

"Not that big of a deal." he repeated, his face that same mask of indifference she'd seen so many times.

She sighed and looked out at the street, "Don't you understand why I'd want to stay?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because everyone you know, everyone who cares about you, your _life_ is back in London." he said.

"Yeah, and so are memories with Ron, and memories about the war, memories about the people we've lost, the people _I've _lost, my parents-" her voice broke on the last word and she took a deep breath.

Draco felt bad for acting like an arse, but he didn't want her to stay in Rome, he wanted her to come home with him. Although that wouldn't work out too well considering she wanted nothing to do with Malfoy Manor, and his parents obviously wanted nothing to do with her.

"Well what would you want me to do? Stay here? I have a business-"

"I would _never_ ask you to move for me. I get that you have responsibilities and things that tie you to London, but I _don't._ I don't have a job that needs me to specifically work from London, and I definitely don't have family there. Sure I have friends, but how hard is it to apparate or floo over here?"

"That's not the point. If you live here and I live back home, sooner or later we're going to start living separate lives and it just won't work out."

"Every relationship takes work Draco." she said, trying to reason with him.

"Yeah, but why make our _already_ complicated relationship even more complicated by trying the whole 'long distance' thing? I mean why _Rome_ of all places?"

"Because Calista's here."

"What does she have to do with it?" he asked.

"She's the only family I have left." she said simply.

He ran a hand through his hair and then pulled Hermione into a hug, resting his chin on her head. "Where do we go from here?" he asked quietly.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and said, "Where do you want it to go?"

He let out a deep breath and said, "I don't want to lose you."

She moved her hands to either side of his face and said, "You're not going to."

He smiled and leaned down, capturing her lips in a kiss.

"Is it safe to come out now?"

They both turned and Cato, Blaise, and Calista stood in the doorway.

Hermione nodded and Draco rolled his eyes.

"Did you get everything resolved?" asked Calista, her eyes on Hermione.

She really wanted Hermione to stay with her. She loved having her around to talk to, and having someone else living with her, but she understood why it was a hard decision for her.

"For the most part." said Hermione, looking to Draco.

He nodded, "Yeah, the only issue seems to be my parents."

Hermione rested her head on Draco's chest with a sigh, "Which would also be the biggest issue."

Blaise nodded and said, "Maybe it won't be too bad..."

Cato snorted and Draco looked at him like he was crazy.

"I'm trying to be positive." he said, sticking his tongue out at them.

Calista chuckled and said, "How about we stick to realism? At least for a little while."

Cato and Draco nodded, Hermione was smirking, and Blaise scowled at her. "You know, it wouldn't kill you guys to be a little optimistic."

"Yeah, but these are my parents we're talking about."

Blaise sighed and nodded, "Yeah, they're not exactly fairytale parents are they?"

They all paused for a moment and Hermione had enough.

"Okay, enough of this sulking crap. Let's go out and have some fun."

Calista nodded in agreement, "That's my girl."

They all chuckled and headed out to see where they'd end up on the busy streets of Rome.


	9. Look Who Finally Gets It

"Are you sure about this?"

"No...but we'll handle it." said Draco, confidently taking hold of Hermione's hand and leading the way into the restaurant.

She stopped, causing him to stop too.

"I don't know if I can do this."

He smirked, knowing that he would have to piss her off to get her to come with him. "You can help hunt down Horcruxes, kill Death Eaters, and help defeat Voldemort, but you can't come to dinner with me and my parents?"

She narrowed her eyes at him and said, "Those are in two totally different categories. I wasn't pretending to be someone I'm not."

"You're not pretending, you're going to be yourself...you just look a bit different. Besides, it's just to prove a point." he said, rolling his eyes.

"That _is _pretending."

"Is the great Hermione Granger chicken?" he asked, that smirk still on his face.

"I am not _chicken_. I simply don't want to create an argument-"

"There's going to be an argument either way. These are my parents we're talking about. But they care about their reputation, so they're less likely to really go off here...probably."

"What do you mean probably?" asked Hermione, a touch of hysteria creeping into her voice.

There was no part of her that wanted anything to do with this process. Telling Draco's parents was probably the scariest thing she had to do. Ever.

But Draco didn't give her time to think about it, just started pulling her after him.

She saw their blonde hair before she really recognized either one of them.

They both stood as they saw him approach, Narcissa giving him a hug and Lucius shaking his hand, before they turned to look at Hermione.

"And who might this beautiful young lady be?" asked Lucius, extending his hand to her.

She shook it gingerly and Narcissa smiled at her.

"I'm Herm-"

Draco coughed and she quickly corrected herself. "I'm Harmony."

"And..."

"She's my girlfriend father." said Draco, pulling out Hermione's chair before taking a seat himself.

"Really? What happened with that Mud-"

"Lucius, you will not use that language here." interrupted Narcissa with a sharp tone.

Lucius sighed and said, "What happened to _Hermione_?"

"It was complicated." was all Draco said.

"Well tell us about yourself dear." said Narcissa, sipping on her wine glass.

"Well," said Hermione, taking a deep breath, "I actually live in Rome at the moment with a cousin of mine, it's where I met Draco."

"Oh I do love Rome. Is that where you've been off at this whole time?" she asked, turning to Draco.

He nodded, "Cato and I went."

"Yes, yes," said Lucius, waving him off, "Where is your family from? I assume you're a witch?"

Hermione feigned shock, "I'm a _what_?"

Lucius' face paled, but before he could say anything Hermione chuckled.

"Yes, I am a witch. My family owns part of Rome. They're a very well known family there."

Draco thought his father would lose his temper, but he actually laughed.

"You had me fooled there. I think it's good that Draco met a woman with a sense of humor."

Narcissa smiled and said, "So do you work?"

Hermione nodded, trying to stick as close as possible to the truth, and said, "I work as a Healer part time."

Narcissa and Lucius both nodded in approval.

Maybe this wouldn't be as difficult as she thought.

* * *

The dinner went well, and Narcissa and Lucius really did seem to like _Harmony_, but what happened when they found out that it was _Hermione_?

They were all standing to leave when Draco said something, "So I take it you approve of her?"

"Why of course we do. She seems like a lovely girl."

Draco nodded and looked to Hermione. It was now or never. She mumbled a quick spell and lifted the glamour that had been cloaking her.

For a moment they were quiet, but then Lucius seemed to come to life again.

"Are you fucking insane? Have you lost-"

"Lucius!" snapped Narcissa. "We are in _public_."

"I don't give a-"

She shot him a look and he immediately shut his mouth.

"Why did you lie to us?" she asked.

"Because we were trying to make a point." said Draco, his arm around Hermione's waist.

"What point?"

"That the only thing you two don't like about her is her bloodline."

Lucius looked as if he was going to implode. "Come Narcissa, we are leaving."

Draco watched as they walked away, but shouted after them, "And good luck disowning me since I own the company."

Lucius stiffened, but didn't stop walking, pulling Narcissa with him.

"Well at least I know they like my personality." said Hermione, trying to make light of the situation.

He sighed, "It's still not the outcome I wanted."

"Of course not, but it's a start."

He nodded with a sigh, "We should get back to Cato's."

Hermione started fidgeting, "I was actually going to stop by and talk to Harry and Ginny."

He raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"If you can face your parents I can face my friends."

He nodded, "Alright, well good lu-"

"Oh no," she said, a smile on her face, "I came with you, so you're coming with me."

"Have you lost your fucking mind? There is no way I'm going to meet _Potter._"

"Oh yes, yes you are." she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek before pulling him along.

* * *

They apparated outside Harry's place, and Draco could think of five million places, he'd rather be.

"Are you really making me do this?"

"What are you, chicken?" she asked, using his words from earlier against him.

He scowled, "I am not afraid of Potter, and if I didn't like you so much I would hex you into next week for even implying it."

She smiled and stopped in front of him, taking his face in her hands ad kissing him. "I'm sorry, forgive me?" she whispered, her lips inches away from his.

He couldn't help but lace his hands through her wild mane of hair and kiss back. "Of course."

She smirked and stepped out of his embrace, walking up the steps to ring the doorbell.

Harry answered it and she turned around, "Well are you coming or not Draco?"

He sighed and followed them inside, cursing the beautiful witch the entire way.

* * *

In the end the meeting went better than Hermione had expected. Harry and Ginny both understood, for the most part, that Hermione had to do what was best for her, and if Draco was what was best for her they would stand behind her decision.

"You want to know a funny story?"

Draco raised an eyebrow and nodded.

"When I came here I made a wish in that fountain Cato had told me about." she admitted.

"Really? What'd you wish for?"

She didn't really know why she was telling him this, but it felt right.

"Well, I wished for someone who was right for me. Someone who wouldn't be an arse or a cheater. I guess in a way I wished for you."

He smiled and pushed her against the wall of his bedroom. "Really now,"

She smirked, "I guess I just got lucky."

"No such thing as luck Granger."

"Maybe, but how else do you explain how this happened?" she asked.

He slid his hands to her waist and said, "Because we made it happen."

"Maybe, but how do you explain your parents not hexing us into the next century, or Harry not trying to curse you?"

He sighed, "If I say I believe in luck, will you shut up so I can kiss you?"

She smiled and nodded,

"Alright, luck exists." Without pausing he lowered his lips to hers, ready to tackle what ever else got in their way, because even though they shouldn't be compatible, even though they shouldn't even be together, and even though he probably didn't deserve her, he had her, and he was keeping her.

And all thanks to Cato. The stubborn bastard.

* * *

**So I'm kinda done with this story...I'll do one or two more chapters for like an epilogue or something, but I kind of lost interest in writing this one...sorry guys...**


	10. Wedding Bells

**Okay, I really, really, _really _want to apologize for stopping this story, I just really don't like it anymore. I promise this is the one and only time I'm going to do this, but I just had to. **

**That being said this is an epilogue (kind of) we're a bit further into their relationship, just to see what's happening two years in, and the next chapter, which will be the last chapter, is going to be about ten years into the future so we can see what I think would have become of the pair.**

**Again, I'm soooo sorry about this, and I promise I'm not going to make this a habit.**

**Oh, and I'm going to make these last two chapters longer to show you guys just how bad I feel. That's also why it's taking me forever lol.**

**Okay I'll shut up so you can read now. :p**

* * *

"Why are we going to this stupid-"

"Draco!" scolded Hermione, slipping into a pair of nude high heels, "Weddings are not stupid."

"When they involve stupid red-headed ferrets who tried to steal my girlfriend, yeah they do." he pouted.

She rolled her eyes, "Stop being such a baby. You never had anything to worry about and you know it."

He smirked, "I do know it, doesn't mean it's okay."

"Please just do this for me? I promise I'll make it up to you when we get back home." she said, a coy smile on her face that made him want to say fuck the wedding, and stay here making love to her.

But alas the beautiful witch wasn't having it. She had told him about Ron and Lavender's wedding _months _ago, and he had agreed to go.

"You don't get to ask me questions during sex anymore." he pouted, tieing his tie.

"We weren't having sex." she said with a smirk, recalling how she'd asked him while giving him head.

He scowled at her, "You know what I mean."

"It worked though."

"For _you_ maybe. Because of my inability to think straight when your mouth is anywhere near me I have to sit through a Weaselbee wedding." he said, running a hand through his hair.

She walked over to him, her pastel blue dress hugging all her curves the right way, and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I _promise _I will make it up to you."

He chuckled, "You better. You definitely owe me."

She smiled and pressed a kiss to his lips before pulling away and grabbing her bag. "Come on, we don't want to be late."

"Oh yes, gods forbid we're late to Weasely's wedding."

"You never know, weddings could be interesting, don't be so negative." she said, pulling out her wand to apparate to the Burrow.

"I'm not being negative. I mean does he even _want _me there?"

"No more than you want to be there I'm sure, but you're my boyfriend so you're going." she said, her tone final.

He sighed, she owed him _big _this time.

* * *

"I'm so glad you guys could make it." whispered Ginny, sliding next to Hermione and Draco with Harry and their son James.

"Gods Gin, you're really starting to show." said Hermione with a soft smile.

It didn't go unnoticed by Draco. They'd had the 'wedding talk' once or twice, but neither one of them really tried to go too deeply into it, mostly because Hermione knew Draco wasn't really into the whole idea of 'family'. Which two years ago, she'd been okay with, now that she'd seen Ginny, and been there with her through her pregnancy and how close she and James were, and now she was pregnant with their _second _child...it just had Hermione thinking that she wanted to have a family too.

Draco didn't know what he wanted. The thought of being married wasn't all that scary to him, because he honestly didn't want anyone besides Hermione, but the child thing? That had him downright terrified. He didn't want to end up being a father like Lucius had been, ruling with an iron fist type deal. He didn't want his child to have to deal with having a messed up father like he did.

"Yeah, and he's kicking like crazy."

"Do you know what you're going to name him?" she whispered.

Harry nodded, "Albus,"

Draco snorted and Hermione elbowed him. Harry rolled his eyes and said, "When are you going to tie the knot with my best friend here?"

Hermione blushed bright red and told him to shut up, while Draco just smirked, enjoying her embarrassment. He thought it was cute considering the fact that she _did _want to get married.

Harry was about to say something, but the music signaling the bride was coming, started playing, and everyone stood up.

Lavender wore what seemed to be a gigantic ball gown with lace and ruffles and beading, and Draco had to bite his tongue from saying something sarcastic.

He looked at Hermione and noticed that it looked like she was biting the inside of her cheek.

It seemed as though, at least to Draco, that the ceremony went on for hours. When it was finally over he breathed a sigh of relief, until he realized that it wasn't technically over.

Lavender had wanted to do things the traditional way, throwing the bouquet, Ron getting the garter, cutting the cake and shoving it in each others faces-all of it.

* * *

Draco sighed as he followed Hermione through the room the Weasely's had reserved for the reception, saying hello to people he didn't know along the way.

When they reached their table he immediately went to grab a drink at the bar. He was going to need it.

When he returned to the table he handed Hermione a drink and scooted his chair closer to hers, running his hand up and down her thigh.

She liked him touching her, it was always comforting, but there was no way she was going to let him get carried away. This was her best friends wedding after all.

"So Draco," said Harry, shifting James to his right leg, "You never did answer my question."

"Harry," snapped Hermione, her cheeks flushing a pink color.

"What? You've been dating for over two years now. We're all curious." he said, gesturing to the rest of the table.

Calista, Cato, Blaise, and Ginny nodded.

Hermione had been staying in Rome in a flat with Draco, who had decided that since he owned the family business he could work from wherever the bloody hell he pleased. She and Calista had actually opened up their own boutique together for vintage clothes and accessories, and it was a _huge _hit. They were even working on expanding their stores to London.

"Well it's none of your-"

"Soon," interrupted Draco, looking at Hermione with a small smile. "At least I hope so."

"What?" she asked, completely caught off guard.

"I figured if I brought it up now you'd be less likely to say no." he whispered in her ear, nipping at the sensitive skin there.

She leaned back and snorted, "This better not be your idea of a proposal."

He laughed, "Of course not. I just want you to be open to the idea."

"I am open to the idea." she said quickly, causing everyone to smile and toast.

"To hopefully having little Hermione's running around!" said Calista.

"Who have Draco's hair." added Blaise with a chuckle.

Draco smirked, but Hermione scowled at him, "There is _nothing _wrong with my hair."

"Of course not love." whispered Draco in her ear.

"Gather around ladies, I'm about to toss the bouquet!" shouted Lavender, heading to the center of the dance floor.

"Come on Hermione, seeing as how Ginny here doesn't really need to catch the bouquet." said Calista, shooting Blaise a look that said, 'take a hint and ask me to marry you'.

Hermione shook her head, "No thanks..."

"Oh come on, it'll be fun." said Calista, pulling her out of her chair and away from a smiling Draco.

She trudged over to where the group of women stood, clearly desperate to catch the stupid bouquet. She honestly didn't see the point.

She moved so she was standing further back, observing the group with a frown, but before she knew what was happening something was flying at her face.

She caught it before it smacked into her, and let out a groan when she realized that she'd just inadvertently caught the damn bouquet.

Everyone congratulated her, and Calista looked smug as they walked back to the table.

Hermione dropped the flowers onto the table and sat down, daring any one of them to say something to her about it.

A slow song came on a few minutes later, and Draco smiled, "Dance with me?"

Hermione nodded and they headed over to the dance floor, joining the couples who were already twirling about.

"You look beautiful tonight Granger." he said, nuzzling her neck.

She blushed and he could feel her skin heat up, "Thank you."

He was using the pads of his thumbs to rub delicate circles on her hips, and she had her arms wrapped around his neck, her hands playing with the silky blonde strands at the nape of his neck.

"Do you want to take a walk in the garden?" he asked, motioning to the balcony doors off to the right.

She saw the smoldering look in his silver eyes and couldn't say no.

"Okay,"

He took her hand and lead her out into the crisp summer air. The stars were twinkling above them, and the garden in the moonlight cast somewhat of an ethereal glow over everything.

They walked further and further away from the party, just enjoying each others presence, until Draco stopped and turned her to face him.

"I love you."

She smiled, he didn't say it to her too often, "What's the occasion?"

"Well," he said, pulling a velvet box out of his jacket pocket, "Marry me."

Her eyes widened, before she laughed, "You're not supposed to propose at someone else's wedding, you're supposed to actually _ask _if I'll marry you, not tell me to, and aside from all of that, you're supposed to be on one knee."

He rolled his eyes, and dramatically got down on one knee, "Hermione Jean Granger, will you do me the honor of marrying me?" he gave her a dazzling smile and then said, "Better?"

"You're such an ass." she said, trying to suppress a smile, "But aside from the fact that this is not at all how I expected to get proposed to...yes, Draco, I would love to marry you."

He broke out into a real smile this time and stood up, sweeping her into his arms and kissing her.

He pulled back and slid the ring onto her finger, enjoying the way it looked there.

"Are you sure you're ready to start calling me Hermione instead of Granger all the time?" she asked with a smile.

"Oh, I'm not going to be calling you Hermione," he said, a sexy smirk on his face, "I'm going to be calling you _Mrs. Malfoy_."

She couldn't help the smile that came to her face, "I think I like the sound of that."

"I like the sound of that too." he said, taking her face in his hands and kissing her.

* * *

"Where've you guys been?"

"More like what have you been doing?" asked Calista, a smug smirk on her face. "You've got a bit of-" she pulled a leaf from her hair and Hermione blushed bright red.

"Not a word." snapped Hermione.

She sat down at the table and glanced over at Draco who stood at the bar with Harry. "Where's Ginny."

Calista pointed to the dance floor where Ginny, Cato, Blaise, Lavender, and Ron were dancing.

"Why aren't you dancing with Blaise?"

"We aren't speaking at the moment?" she said, her tone irritated.

"Why not?"

"He seems to think that we don't need to get married right now, and I disagreed. I mean we've been dating for over a year now and - _oh my gods what is that on your finger Hermione Jean Granger_?!"

Hermione blushed and said, "Well-"

"Did he _propose _to you?!"

"Keep your voice down!" snapped Hermione.

Unfortunately Calista had drawn the attention of Draco, who was currently sauntering back over to them with a smirk on his face, "Talking about something?"

He pulled Hermione onto his lap as Calista asked, "Did you propose?"

Draco chuckled, "Yes,"

"Ooh how romantic!"

Hermione snorted, "Yeah right."

"Oh shut up." he said, a crooked smile on his face.

"Did I miss something?"

"He-"

"Nope," interrupted Draco, pressing a kiss to Hermione's cheek.

Calista rolled her eyes, "Well let me see that rock girl!"

Hermione placed her hand in Calista's and let her admire the ring.

"Boy, I sure hope Blaise gets his ass in gear and asks me sometime before I _die_." she said dramatically.

"Well it took Draco two years to ask me. Be patient."

"I don't want to be patient, I want to be married." she said, watching as Blaise, Ginny, Cato, Lavender, and Ron all headed over to their table.

Draco placed a hand over her left one to hide the ring, he knew that she wouldn't want her best friend to know she'd gotten engaged at his wedding.

She shot him an appreciative smile and gave him a kick peck on the lips before the group got to them.

"I'm so glad you all could make it!" gushed Lavender.

Hermione nodded, "You look lovely."

"Thank you!"

Calista rolled her eyes and made a gagging motion that she cleverly hid from Lavender and Ron.

"Can I talk to you for a second Mione?" asked Ron, his cheeks a bit red.

Hermione felt Draco tense up, but she nodded nonetheless, "Of course. I'll be right back." she said, kissing Draco's cheek before following Ron out onto the balcony.

"I'm really happy for you." said Ron, his gaze focused ou on the garden.

Hermione smiled, "Same to you. You look happy."

He nodded, "I just...I have to ask this, because if I don't I think I'm going to regret it for the rest of my life."

"Regret what?" she asked slowly.

"Do you think...do you think we could have stayed together if things had been different?"

Hermione took a deep breath. She hadn't been expecting that question. They hadn't really talked about their failed relationship, and now, two years later, she didn't think it was relevent. Especially now that Ron was married and she was engaged.

"I don't think so."

"Even if I hadn't cheated on you and you hadn't met Draco?" he asked, finally turning to look at her.

"Ron," she said putting her hand over his, "I love you. You know I love you, but I never loved you in _that _way. Regardless of whether or not you cheated or I found someone else, we would have found something else to break up over. I mean we argued before you cheated. Our relationship was never meant to work out You and I both know that."

He let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding and nodded, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

He pulled her into a hug and before he turned to walk back inside and rejoin the party, he turned back to her with a smile, "Oh, and congratulations on the engagement."

Hermione was too shocked to respond, but Ron was gone anyway. She shook her head and turned to face the garden, leaning against the rail and taking a deep breath.

A few minutes later she felt two strong arms wrap around her waist, and then Draco's voice was by her ear. "You okay?"

She nodded, "Yeah, it's just such a nice night, I figured I'd stay out here for a bit."

He nuzzled his face into her neck, placing light kisses there. "When can we leave?"

She chuckled, "Let me just go say goodbye to everyone, and then we'll leave."

"And then you'll make it up to me?" he asked, and even though she couldn't see his face, she knew he had that signature smirk on his face.

"Of course."

* * *

Hermione pushed Draco down onto the couch back at their flat. She had promised Draco she'd make it up to him, and that's exactly what she planned on doing.

She flicked her wand, turning on the stereo so it was playing a sensual song, before placing the wand on the bookshelf.

She faced him with a sexy smile and he felt his pants start to tighten already. She was just so bloody _sexy_ it should be a sin.

She moved her hips in time to the beat, slowly gliding her hands up her sides and over her chest, her eyes closed. Draco clenched his hands at his sides, trying to keep himself from pulling her over to him and running his hands all over her.

She walked over to him, kicking off her shoes in the process, and straddled his hips. He moved one hand to her waist and the other pulled her out of its up-do.

He loved the way her curls fell around her face, making her look like a goddess. She was beautiful.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, slowly moving her hips over his, and leaned down to capture his lips in a kiss. She was controlling everything, and Draco was torn between needing to be the dominant one, and loving how sexy she was when she took charge.

She slid her tongue into his mouth, stroking his while exploring. She ran her hands through his silky blonde locks and smiled as as he bit her lip.

She unbuttoned his shirt and slid it off his shoulders, before kissing down his chest. She moved so she was sitting between his legs on the ground, keeping eye contact with him as she unbuckled and slid off his pants.

She moved her hand over the bulge in his black boxers, eliciting a moan from Draco. She smirked and pulled his boxers down, immediately taking him into her hand and stroking him, softly at first, but progressively harder as she continued.

She brought her mouth down to him and he moaned out her name, closing his eyes and tangling a hand in her hair.

She bobbed her head up and down, bringing him to the edge before releasing him from her mouth with a _pop_. He groaned, "Hermione,"

"Patience," was all she said as she stood up and straddled his lap again, moving more forcefully than before.

"Draco," she said, kissing his neck, "Touch me."

He didn't need to be told twice, his hands went to the zipper at the back of her dress, and unzipped it, watching as the pastel dress slid down to her waist, exposing creamy skin and a white lace bra.

He smirked and moved his hands to her chest, slowly teasing and massaging before reaching behind her and unclasping it.

She let out a soft moan as he leaned forward, taking first one than the other nipple into his warm, sinfully talented mouth.

"Stand up," he whispered, ghosting his lips across her ear.

She stood and the dress slid down the rest of the way o the floor, leaving her only in a pair of matching with lace panties.

He stood too and crushed his lips against hers, deciding he was going to take charge, regardless of what he'd said earlier.

He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his torso, letting him carry her into the bedroom and place her onto the bed.

He paused for a moment and just looked at her, not believing that she was actually his fiance.

"Are you just going to stand there or are we going to celebrate being engaged?" she asked with a smile.

He smirked and crawled on top of her, "We are definitely going to celebrate."

He kissed her lips briefly before moving down her neck, across her stomach, and to the delicate skin above her panty line.

He looked up at her, a sexy smile on his face.

"Draco, you don't have to-"

"I know I don't have to. I _want _to."

"But I'm supposed to be making it up to you." she argued, even as he tossed her panties somewhere across the room.

"You are making it up to me." he said, kissing the outside of her thighs, moving closer and closer to where she was literally _dripping _for him.

"Merlin, Love, you're so _wet_."

She groaned and dropped her head back onto the pillow as he brought his mouth down to her core. It wasn't long before she was a writhing mess beneath him, pulling on his hair and mumbling nonsensical things.

"Come for me," he whispered, sliding two fingers into her.

After three pumps she was coming undone, clenching around his fingers.

He kissed his way back up to her mouth and positioned himself between her legs.

She shifted so her legs were wrapped around his hips, angling herself so that he could easily slide into her. They both moaned at the contact.

"Oh gods,"

"_Fuck_,"

He began thrusting in and out of her at a steady pace, slowly building up speed. He leaned down, kissing her neck, before Hermione pulled his face up to hers, claiming his mouth in a frenzy of teeth and tongues.

"Harder," she panted. She could tell he was close, and so was she.

He reached a hand down between their bodies and began rubbing her clit in small circles, quickly pushing her over the edge, him closely following.

He rolled off of her, pulling her so she was laying across his chest. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Did I make it up to you?" she asked, lifting her head to look at him with a smile on her face.

He smirked, "I think you're getting there."

"Oh really?"

He chuckled, but it quickly turned into a moan as she slid on top of him.

"Well, then let me try again."

* * *

"When did you know you wanted to marry her?"

Draco and Blaise were sitting in the kitchen of Blaise's flat, discussing his relationship with Calista.

"Well, honestly it was quite a while ago. When Weasely was trying to get her back last year, that's when I realized that I didn't want her to be with anyone else, and I didn't want to be with anyone else." he answered simply.

"Yeah, but how did you _know_?"

"Because I love her."

"I love Calista too, but don't you think it's too soon?" he asked, running a hand through his hair.

"It doesn't matter what I think, it matters what you think. You're the one getting married. Or not." he said with a shrug.

Blaise sighed, "Do you regret asking her?"

"Not even for a second." he said confidently.

It had been 6 months since Draco had proposed to Hermione, and the wedding plans were almost completely taken care of, except for the small fact of Hermione's wedding dress.

She was adamant that she didn't want a fancy dress...everyone else seemed to have a different opinion. Even Ginny wanted to see her in an actual wedding dress.

Hermione tried to compromise by getting a short dress, but nobody wanted that. They wanted the ball gown type dress for her, but she didn't.

Draco knew she'd look beautiful either way, so he just stayed out of the dress talk as much as he possibly could, because he didn't need the drama.

"Let me ask you something." said Draco.

Blaise raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"Did you already buy a ring?"

He nodded.

"Then you're ready."

* * *

"Oh Hermione you look beautiful!"

Hermione stood in a tea length wedding dress, with a modest v-neck with light beading, Chantilly lace, and was accented by a thick silk belt leading to a tule skirt.

She loved the dress, and everyone was surprised by how much they loved it too, especially Calista, who had wanted her in something extravagant. But she realized that what Hermione had on matched her perfectly.

"I feel like I'm going to throw up." said Hermione, watching as the bridesmaids walked down the aisle. Ginny took her arm in hers, since she would be the one to walk her down the aisle.

"I felt the same way before I married Harry. I was so nervous, but then I got up there and looked at him, and it was like I just _knew_ that everything was going to be okay."

Hermione took a deep breath and smiled at her best friend. Just then the music started up and she said, "I guess it's now or never."

Ginny threw her shoulders back and they began to walk.

The aisle seemed incredibly long to Hermione, and her stomach was doing everything but run away from her. When she finally reached Draco and Ginny gave her a kiss on the cheek, she had calmed some.

Draco took her hands in his and smiled, "You look beautiful Hermione."

And she did. He had never seen a more beautiful bride, or a more beautiful woman, in his life. And in a few more minutes she was about to be his permanently.

"You don't look too bad yourself," she said quietly.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have gathered here today..."

The ceremony went off without a hitch, everyone cheering when they kissed.

Photographers showed up when Narcissa and Lucius did, taken _tons _of pictures, but not even that could ruin their day.

"Oh the wedding was so beautiful." said Narcissa, coming up and giving them each a hug.

"And you look lovely." said Lucius with a smile.

Narcissa nodded, "I'm so glad you didn't let them talk you into buying a long dress."

She spun her around so she could look at all of it, and Draco smiled.

"I do have a beautiful wife, don't I?"

Narcisssa and Lucius chuckled, and Hermione blushed, not used to hearing him call her his wife. It was all just so surreal.

"Well you two enjoy the rest of the evening." said Lucius, literally pulling his wife away from the newly weds.

But who could blame her? She finally, finally, _finally _had a daughter.

* * *

"Draco...Draco!"

Draco walked up the stairs and into the bathroom to find Hermione with her hand over her mouth.

"What? Are you okay? Do you-"

"Draco," she said softly, "I'm pregnant."

For a moment he was silent, and she turned t look at him, but just then he picked her up into his arms and spun her around.

"I'm going to be a dad."

"You're going to be a dad." she said softly.

He kissed her, completely out of words to describe how he felt.

He was going to be a father. They were going to be parents. Have a family.

"I guess sometimes wishes do work, huh?" he said, a smile on his face.

"I told you luck exists."

"Well with any luck it'll be a boy."

"Ha, no, we are most definitely having a girl." said Hermione, walking out into their bedroom.

He rolled his eyes, "I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

"I'll love him or her either way." she said with a smile.

"So will I," said Draco, "But it'll be a boy."

He chuckled and she swatted him in the chest. "Arse,"

"You love me anyway." he said, kissing her cheek.

"That I do," she said softly, "That I do."

* * *

**If you want to see Hermione's wedding dress, the link is in my profile. Review lovelies. (:**


	11. Happily Ever After

**Okay, as I've mentioned before, I'm sorry about ending the story, buuut here's the epilogue (part two) 10 years later. I hope you like it. (:**

**It's going to be a series of snapshots into their lives, so don't get confused by that.**

**And if you want a story that I will ****_definitely_**** be finishing you should go read Library Visits, or A Moment in Time, which I'm almost done with. (:**

**Leave me some reviews as parting gifts (:**

* * *

Hermione stood, watching her two boys, Scorpius and Caelum, playing outside in their large backyard. She hated that Draco had been right about the sex of their child, _twice_, but she had been happy nonetheless.

Especially since after Scorpius and Caelum were born she had a beautiful baby girl named Phoenix and she was currently pregnant with their fourth child, who they had recently found out was also a girl.

A perfectly even family.

Scorpius, their eldest at age seven, looked exactly like Draco. The _spitting image_ of him. Straight blonde hair, sharp aristocratic features, piercing grey eyes, and the signature Malfoy smirk.

Caelum, age six, on the other hand, looked exactly like Hermione, curly brown hair, toffee colored eyes, freckles across the bridge of his nose, and a laugh that matched Hermione's exactly.

Phoenix, the youngest so far at age four, looked like both of them. She had curly blonde hair, grey eyes with a toffee colored ring around the irises, her father's smirk, Hermione's laugh - and her freckles.

All three children were incredibly smart, of course with two parents as brilliant as Hermione and Draco, one could only expect as much.

Hermione smiled as Draco come up behind her and wrapped his arms around his waist, his hands resting on her stomach.

"I love you." he whispered in her ear.

"Love you back," she said with a smile.

* * *

"Scorpius, Caelum, Phoenix! Come on! We're going to be late!" shouted Hermione. "And grab Aurora!"

A few seconds later they came down the stairs, the youngest Malfoy, at age five, being carried by Scorpius.

The only one missing seemed to be-

"Phoenix, get your butt down here!" called Draco.

"Oh calm down, I'm coming." she said, skipping down the stairs.

Scorpius, ever the one to be punctual, said, "Come _on_, if we don't go now we're going to miss the train."

"Oh shut up Scor. It's not like you're that crazy about Hogwarts anyway." said Caelum, rolling his eyes.

It was Scorpius' second year at Hogwarts, and Caelum's first. Phoenix still had two years before she'd be enrolled, and Aurora had quite some time.

It had been just as hectic last year as it was now, everyone scrambling around to get ready in time so the two boys wouldn't miss the Hogwarts Express.

Not that Hermione would let that happen.

"How would you know what I do and don't like?" snapped Scorpius, "Last I knew you weren't a mind reader."

"Guys," said Phoenix, shooting the boys a look.

Even though they were both older than her, she reminded them too much of Hermione for them to ever really argue with her.

Both boys sighed and Caelum said, "Do you think they'll teach you some really cool Dark Arts Spells this year?"

"No," said Draco, Hermione, and Scorpius all at once.

Caelum muttered about not learning anything valuable when Phoenix cut in, "You know, no knowledge is ever wasted. It's power, and the sooner you-"

"Oh shut up Phe," said Scorpius with a smile.

He did love his little sister, both of them, and even his annoying brother. Somehow he and Phoenix had a special connection though. He didn't know why, but it didn't really matter.

When they got to the station Phoenix was strangely quiet. It was always hard for her to watch her brothers leave for such long periods of time.

After Hermione, Draco, and Aurora had said goodbye to the boys, they walked over to Phoenix.

Caelum hugged her first, pressing a kiss to her cheek, "I'll miss you."

She nodded, "I'll miss you too."

He waved and got onto the train, finding his seat with his friends quickly.

That left her and Scorpius standing on the platform.

She opened her mouth, but before she could say anything Scorpius pulled her into a tight hug.

"I love you." he said quietly.

She could feel her eyes tearing up, just as they had last year, "I love you too."

He leaned back and wiped her tears away, "Don't cry. You'll be coming with us before you know it, and then I'll have to go into full on big brother mode, beating the boys off of you with a stick."

She chuckled and pulled him into one last hug, "Till the holidays."

He nodded, "Till the holidays."

* * *

"Can you believe we've only got one left at home?" asked Hermione, nestled comfortably in her husbands arms.

He smiled, "It is quite strange isn't it?"

"Yes, Aurora's starting at Hogwarts tomorrow, it's Scorpius' last year, and before we know it Caelum and Phoenix are going to be off exploring the world on their own." said Hermione, a wistful look on her face.

"Don't go getting all teary-eyed on me." he said chuckling, "We'll finally have the house to ourselves again."

She laughed, "Hey, you wanted to keep having more kids. Giving up mummy and daddy time was part of the deal."

He nodded, "But it is quite exciting isn't it? Scorpius taking over the family business, Caelum, most likely becoming a lawyer next year..."

"I think Scorpius will definitely make a good business man. He's got his father's intimidating nature." said Hermione with a smile.

She couldn't wait to find out if Phoenix would stick with her idea of becoming a Healer when she graduated. She hoped that she would because she knew Phoenix would make an extraordinary Healer.

"All Malfoy men are like that." he said indignantly.

Hermione snorted, "Caelum wouldn't hurt a fly."

"He must take after his mother." he said with a warm smile.

"What do you suppose will happen this year for Aurora? I mean we always have some situation happen when one of our kids goes to school."

He laughed, "My guess is that she'll be really great friends with Luna and Theo's son Breca."

Hermione couldn't help but agree. Aurora was always calm and happy, and strangely enough she seemed to be the most insightful out of all of their children.

Phoenix and Scorpius were definitely the most hot-headed, and Caelum was a fairly calm and even temper.

Draco had gotten the first laugh when Scorpius got sorted into Slytherin, but Hermione, even though she'd protested, knew that's where he would be placed.

Caelum, on the other hand, and to Draco's dismay, got sorted into Gryffindor. Better than being on Huffelpuff, he'd always said.

Phoenix could have gone either way, but Draco was pleased when she was placed in Slytherin. Scorpius had been happy too, because he'd been able to see more of her.

Now it was Aurora's turn to find out what house she would belong to. Hermione thought that neither Gryffindor nor Slytherin really suited her. She seemed more fit for Raven Claw considering she acted a lot like Luna - well aside from the Nargle fixation Luna had. But that would have to wait another day.

Not surprisingly, Phoenix was the smartest girl at school, closely followed by Scorpius. Caelum wasn't too interested in school, and focused most of his time on Quidditch like Scorpius did. Phoenix, like her mother, did not do sports, for fear of injury.

"It was nice to have them under one roof again." she said after a while.

Draco nodded, "Get some rest. You know tomorrow will be hectic."

She nodded, pressing a light kiss on his cheek before falling into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Phoenix, what were you doing with that boy?"

Phoenix groaned, "Scorpius back off."

He rolled his eyes and followed her downstairs, "I most certainly will not."

Phoenix spun around, her steel eyes glaring at him, "I am seventeen years old, I can do as I please."

Scorpius laughed, "Right. Should I go tell father that?"

Phoenix opened and closed her mouth a few times before she said, "You wouldn't."

"You're my little sister. Yes I would."

She groaned, "Caelum!"

There was a thud and then a disheveled looking Caelum appeared at the top of the stairs, leaning over the banister.

"What?"

"Tell Scor to get his nose out of my personal life."

"What personal life?" asked Caelum, eyebrow raised.

Scorpius rolled his eyes, "I told you to keep an eye on her while I went on vacation. What the hell happened?"

"I can't watch her twenty-four-seven."

"And you don't need to." snapped Phoenix. "I'm graduating in a month and then I'm going to become a Healer. Are the two of you really going to follow me around St. Mungo's to make sure no boys look at me?"

Caelum was at a loss for words and looked to Scorpius, "Well no, but-"

"But nothing," she said, putting on her 'Hermione tone' as the boys called it. "I'm almost a grown up. I deserve some privacy. I understand that you two are my older brother's and that this is like your job, but I don't need you their _all _the time."

Caelum ran a hand through his curly hair and said, "Fine, but we want to meet him."

Scorpius nodded, "Either that or we tell dad."

Phoenix sighed, "Can't you go do this protective thing with Aurora?"

"She's only thirteen." said Caelum.

"She's turning fourteen next month, and if you knew anything about girls - or your sister, you'd know that she _does _like boys."

Scorpius snorted, "No way. Dad said that Aurora reminds him of Luna."

Caelum laughed but Phoenix just fixed them with a look. "And now Luna has two sons, and one's Aurora's age. They hang out twenty-four-seven, I'm surprised you haven't noticed."

"She's dating Breca?" asked Caelum, a shocked look on his face.

Phoenix rolled her eyes, "Don't act so surprised. Aurora's a knockout. Besides, they're cute together."

Scorpius almost had a heart attack. "Do not refer to my littlest sister as a knockout. I almost killed Tyler when he called you hot."

"Tyler thought I was hot?"

"Not the point Phe," said Caelum.

She sighed, "You both act so much like Dad, just like uncle Harry, uncle Ron, cousin James, and cousin Albus. It feels like Aurora and I have _seven _fathers instead of one."

"Good," said the two young men in unison.

She glared at both of them, before Scorpius broke the silence.

"So do we get to meet this guy or what?"

"Well you don't really leave me much of a choice now do you?"

He chuckled, "No, I suppose I don't."

She took a deep breath, "Come on then. We're meeting for lunch in Diagon Alley."

Caelum _accio-ed_ a t-shirt from upstairs, and then they headed to Diagon Alley.

Before they walked inside the pub Scorpius asked, "So what's this blokes name?"

"Xander," she said slowly.

Caelum's eyes widened a bit, "Xander...as in Xander Lovegood?"

Phoenix smiled sheepishly, "Maybe,"

Scorpius groaned, "Now _both _of my sisters are dating Loony Lovegoods?"

"They're not loony." snapped Phoenix. "You shouldn't let dad tell you those stupid things."

Caelum sighed, "What's he like? Does he see Nargles too?"

Phoenix rolled her eyes, "Just because Luna was a bit eccentric doesn't mean that her kids are. I mean their dad is Theo, and he used to be one of Dad's friends." she reminded them.

Scorpius and Caelum both nodded reluctantly, "Alright, well let's go inside then."

* * *

"I can't believe my little girl is getting married today." said Draco, hugging his eldest daughter.

Over the past two years Phoenix had become a Healer, and in the meantime she and Xander had gotten closer, and one day he'd proposed to her. Luckily for Phoenix, and Xander, everybody loved him, and was very excited for her.

Draco and Scorpius still threatened Xander with bodily injury if they ever hurt Phoenix, but for the most part they were friendly.

"I'm nervous." she said quietly, squeezing Draco.

He chuckled and leaned back to look at her, "It's normal."

"Were you nervous when you were marrying mum?"

He laughed, "Extremely nervous. But in the end, trust me, it's well worth it."

She smiled and hugged him again.

"Awe, look at that." said Hermione, snapping a picture of the two of them.

Draco rolled his eyes, "You and those damn muggle contraptions."

Phoenix and Hermione just laughed.

"Alright, they're about to start, grab your bouquet." said Hermione.

She gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before retreating back to her seat.

"Merlin, this is really happening." said Phoenix quietly.

Draco smiled and took her arm, "You look beautiful. Reminds me of when your mum walked down the aisle."

Phoenix smiled, "Thank you."

Just then the music signalling her entrance began.

"I do believe that's our cue."

Phoenix nodded and they headed down the aisle.

Xander was almost the spitting image of Luna, and it was a tad unsettling. He had the same pale blonde hair and those light blue-grey eyes, but he was a handsome young man who treated Phoenix like a princess.

Draco had taken a bit of time to get used to the idea of his daughter becoming a Lovegood, but when he saw how in love the two were, he couldn't stand in their way.

Not that Hermione would have let him in the first place.

After the wedding everyone was milling around, talking, dancing, and eating. Scorpius and his wife, Lydia, were talking quietly at a table, Caelum and his girlfriend Melinda were on the dance floor with Phoenix and Xander, and Aurora was sitting with Breca and Jonathan. She and Breca, Xander's younger brother had decided that they were better off as friends, and so they'd become _best _friends.

And she might possibly have a crush on Jonathan...just possibly.

Hermione and Draco sat at a table with all the adults, chatting about how grown up all their children were becoming.

Lily Potter, Breca Lovegood, and Aurora were the only three children that were still at home, and that wouldn't be for much longer either. They were graduating in about two years.

"Can you believe a Malfoy actually married a Lovegood?" asked Luna.

Draco chuckled, "It's more believable than if she'd married a Weasely."

Ron rolled his eyes and laughed, "Shut it Ferret."

Everyone chuckled and conversation flowed as if they'd all been friends from the beginning.

"I do believe this is the first time we've had the whole lot of us here together since our days at Hogwarts." said Harry, picking up his glass.

"Or ever," chirped Calista with a smile.

Cato smiled in agreement.

Everyone nodded and George picked up his glass, "A toast,"

Everyone lifted their glasses, "To new beginnings,"

"To young love," said Ginny.

"To friendship," said Harry.

"To weddings that brought us together," said Theo.

"To Phoenix and Xander," said Hermione.

"To our children," said Draco.

"And to those we wish could be here." said Luna, making the briefest of mentions of the War.

"Cheers,"

* * *

"Alright everyone, dinner's ready!"

Draco and Hermione's house was packed full of friends and family.

Scorpius and Lydia had two children, twins. A boy and girl named Nova and Vega.

Phoenix and Xander had two daughters named Lyra and Lucia.

Caelum had married, and Melissa was six months pregnant with a baby boy they were planning on naming Hyperion.

Aurora, being the youngest, didn't have children, but she was engaged, and to Jonathan no less! They were having a winter wedding in December.

Along with the new additions to the family, all the old friends were there as well, along with Phoenix, Scorpius, and Caelum's friends.

Everyone gathered around the table, that Hermione had conveniently conjured so everyone would be able to sit down, and started grabbing food.

Draco came up and wrapped his arms around her waist, "I think we did pretty good."

Hermione smiled, "I think so too."

Later that night, when Hermione and Draco were heading upstairs he took her hand in his, "I'm really glad Cato talked me into going to Rome."

"I'm really glad old age suits you." said Hermione with a chuckle.

Draco rolled his eyes and laughed, "It suits you too."

She just rolled her eyes, not buying it.

But he knew her all too well. He took her hand and spun her around so she was in his arms, "You're just as beautiful as when I first met you. Not that I would've ever admitted it."

She chuckled, "It's crazy to think that we really did all this."

Draco nodded, "But you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way."

Hermione smiled and kissed him, "I love you."

"And I love you."


End file.
